Kentucky GOP bill paves the way for 'deadly physical force' against the homeless

Republicans in Kentucky are cooking up new legislation that would pave the way for property owners to deploy "deadly physical force" against homeless people.

Vice reports that the bill, known as the "Safer Kentucky Act," says that physical force against homeless people is "justifiable" if a property owner believes that criminal trespass, robbery or unlawful camping are occurring on their property.

Additionally, "deadly physical force" can be justified if the property owner believes a homeless person is trying to "dispossess" them of their property.

Lyndon Pryor, the CEO of the Louisville Urban League, tells Vice that the legislation will likely have deadly consequences for the homeless in his state.

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“We’re going to get people killed, that is just the unfortunate fact,” he explained. “We have decided that as a society some people are not worthy of human respect and dignity and we are able to treat them in completely inhumane ways.”

Eric Tars, a senior policy director for the National Homelessness Law Center, similarly tells Vice that this legislation presents very real dangers for homeless people.

"This is teeing up vigilantism against people experiencing homelessness on a scale that we've never seen before,” he said. “It's a really concerning escalation.”

According to Vice, the bill appears to have been based on work by the libertarian Cicero Institute think tank that has been pushing legislation targeting homeless people all across the country.