‘River Dave,’ jailed for squatting in New Hampshire cabin for 30 years: ‘He’s not hurting anybody’
(The AEGIS Alliance) – A guy who goes by the nickname “River Dave” to seafarers and kayakers in New Hampshire has been jailed for squatting for almost three decades on private property in the Concord area.
For 27 years, 81-year-old David Lidstone has lived in the solar-panel-covered Canterbury log cabin. The property owner intends to demolish the structure that resides near the Merrimack River, according to The Associated Press on Wednesday.
“You came with your guns, you arrested me, brought me in here, you’ve got all my possessions. You keep ‘em,” Lidstone, that’s been put behind bars for almost 3 full weeks on a civil contempt sanction, said to a court at Wednesday’s hearing.
“He’s just a really, really big caring guy, and just chooses to live off the grid,” a long-time pal of Lidstone who’s also a kayaker, named Jodie Gedeon that participated with others to show their support for him Monday at a city conference. “It really is about humanity, it really is about compassion, empathy …he’s not hurting anybody.”
Although he is in agreement with that last view and feels sorry for Lidstone who was “doing his own thing in the ‘Live Free or Die’ state,” Merrimack County Superior Court Judge Andrew Schulman kept in mind that property regulations do not favor Lidstone’s side.
Even if the city had good standing in the issue, the log cabin, that’s not accessible by a roadway, remains in violation of local area and state zoning and environmental policies.
A previous proprietor of the residential property that rests on 73 acres utilized for lumber harvestings and has belonged to the very same family since 1963, provided River Dave verbal approval to reside there years earlier, Lidstone says. Age 86 Leonard Giles, the present proprietor, did not find out about Lidstone residing there up until city management informed him in 2015 and desires for the man to move out.
On Wednesday, the court recommended Giles as well as city representatives collaborate with a mediator.
“We’ve got to recognize the fact that this was a managed woodlot, with income which is supposed to support my elderly client in his retirement. At some point, how far is he supposed to go in order to turn his woodlot into a habitable lot for somebody else who’s there trespassing?” Giles’ attorney, Lisa Snow Wade pointed out, that stated her client “just wants his land back.”
Lidstone, that’s generated income as a woodsman, doesn’t point the finger at Giles for demanding he move out, that he describes as “a heck of a nice old man,” however, instead, he pointed out at the hearing, the “lying, cheating corrupt judges like you that are stepping on little people like me. But I’m telling you, sir, you step on me, I’m going to bite your ankle.”
A court had ordered the U.S. Air Force vet to move out in 2017 and states the log cabin isn’t his house, yet it’s a hunting and fishing camping ground and would like to know why roadway accessibility is required: “Do you think I’m an idiot? You’re going to put a septic tank in for a hunting camp?”
A deal wasn’t struck after that 2017 order, courthouse records show.
Lidstone may be released from jail if he consents to move out, if Giles destroys the log cabin, or if one month passes after Lidstone’s jailing. An additional hearing has been scheduled for next week.
Kyle James Lee – The AEGIS Alliance – This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
