Gainesville Police arrested two men Friday for refusing to evacuate Dignity Village during Hurricane Matthew.
At about noon Friday, David L. Deegan, 58, and Paul Cooksey Allen, 53, both of Gainesville, refused to leave the tent city located just outside of the Grace Marketplace homeless shelter, according to a police report.
Gainesville’s city manager and city attorney had ordered GPD to evacuate Dignity Village during Hurricane Matthew, according to the report.
GPD was told not to allow residents to stay, even if they refused, according to the report. On Thursday night, another officer had also told the two to evacuate Dignity Village.
On Friday, police found Deegan and Allen in the same tent and asked them at least a dozen times to take shelter in Grace Marketplace, located at 3055 NE 28 Ave., according to the report. When police asked, the men responded, “F--- you, get out of here.”
Both were removed from the tent and forced into a GPD car, according to the report. Police arrested them on charges of resisting an officer without violence and violating disaster preparedness and emergency management.
Authorities took Deegan and Allen to the Alachua County Jail, where they were released Saturday on their own recognizance.
