Judiciary committee hears bill to criminalize squatting; motion for immediate passage fails

The Senate Judiciary Committee opened a hearing on House Bill 13‑05, which would add unlawful occupancy of a residential dwelling (commonly described in testimony as “squatting”) to North Dakota’s criminal trespass provisions.

Representative Jim Casper, sponsor, told the committee the state “does not have anything in Century Code addressing this issue” and said the bill would make “an individual who unlawfully detains, occupies, or trespasses upon a residential dwelling … guilty of a class c felony for the first offense and a class b felony for a second or subsequent offense” if the repeat offense occurs at the same dwelling.

The bill’s sponsor said the measure responds to reports that empty houses or apartments are…