What the fuck
This is some petty shit, even for Josh Shapiro
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Pennsylvania's Democrat governor exposed as SQUATTER as he battles neighbor over strip of land in stunning 'American Dream' neighborhood
Pennsylvania's
Democrat governor is being sued by his neighbors who say he is trespassing and unlawfully occupying a piece of land that they refused to sell to him.
Governor Josh Shapiro and his wife Lori own an $830,500 home in the Philadelphia suburb of Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.
The couple's property shares a common boundary with land owned by Jeremy and Simone Mock, whose home is worth just shy of $1 million.
The Shapiros wanted to build an eight-foot security fence along the boundary after an arsonist attacked the Governor's official mansion in Harrisburg while Shapiro was inside with his family, the Mocks' lawsuit said. Shapiro and his family are Jewish, with the arsonist reportedly telling police that he was spurred into the attack by
Israel's war on
Hamas.
The couple offered to buy 2,900 square feet of land from the Mocks, which for decades they had believed was part of their own property, so they could move forward with their security project, the complaint alleged.
But the families could not agree on a purchase price, so the Mocks offered to lease the land to the Shapiros, according to the lawsuit.
The Shapiros initially agreed to the lease, the Mocks' lawsuit alleges, but ultimately decided to take 'alternative actions' to obtain the land, which the governor and first lady claimed they owned through 'adverse possession.'
The Shapiros planted large trees on the Mocks' property, threatened to remove healthy trees from the land, flew a drone over the area and chased away the Mocks' arborist and surveyor, the lawsuit alleged.
The governor also directed Pennsylvania state police to patrol the land, even though it was owned by the Mocks, the court filing stated.
When the Mocks tried to access their land, state police allegedly told them the area was 'disputed' and ordered them to leave immediately.
The Mocks further claim they were forced to pause construction of their own fence because state police forbid their contractors from approaching a 'disputed area' in the 'security zone,' despite the couple owning the land.
State police told the Mocks, citing how the area was a 'security zone,' they could not enter without consent from the Shapiros.
The Shapiros, in their counter complaint, argued they are owners of the disputed area due to Pennsylvania's adverse possession law, which allows an unauthorized occupant to acquire legal title to another person's property if they have occupied the area continuously for 21 years.
The Shapiros claim their uninterrupted possession of the disputed area began in May 2003, when they moved into their home, the complaint said.
They note that the fence that separates their property and the Mocks' property was erected before they purchased their home in 2003.
From the date of purchase until 2025, residents of both addresses have treated the fence line as the actual property boundary, the filing alleged.
According to their complaint, the couple have maintained, improved, and exercised dominion over the area by 'mowing, landscaping, installing improvements, and excluding others.'
They governor and first lady further cited how the Mocks purchased their home in April 2017 and since then have 'never possessed or occupied' the disputed land.
The Mocks also never objected to their use of the property until October 2025 when the Shapiros informed them that they actually owned the land, the countersuit said.
The Shapiros learned about the Mocks' ownership of the land in summer 2025 after the state sent a land surveyor to the home as part of its plan to implement additional security measures on the property.
State officials decided to amp up security at the residence after arsonist Cody Balmer, 38, threw a Molotov cocktail at his official residence in April.
Shapiro was inside the property with friends and family as they celebrated the first night of the Passover holiday at the time of the attack.
Balmer pleaded guilty to the attempted murder last October. He also entered pleas to terrorism, 22 counts of arson, aggravated arson, burglary, aggravated assault of Shapiro, 21 counts of reckless endangerment and loitering in the attack that caused millions of dollars in damage to the state-owned brick building.
Under the plea deal, he was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison, far less than he could have faced if the case had gone to trial.
The neighbor row, however, has now become more than an issue of security with Shapiro's office alleging it is a political stunt to harm him as he runs for re-election.
The Mocks, who in their lawsuit accused Shapiro of an 'outrageous abuse of power,' are being represented by prominent Republican attorney Walter Zimolong.
Zimolong refers to himself as Pennsylvania's go-to attorney for 'conservative causes and candidates for office,' his website states.
He is a member of the Republican National Lawyers Association and his previous clients include the political campaigns of President Donald Trump and US Sen. Dave McCormick.
Shapiro's spokesperson, in a statement to the
Philadelphia Inquirer earlier this month, said: 'The Governor looks forward to a swift resolution and will not be bullied by anyone trying to score cheap political points, especially at the expense of his family's safety and wellbeing.'
Zimolong, however, has hit back at the allegation, telling the
Washington Post that his clients' lawsuit is 'not a political action or "stunt" — it's a straightforward defense of the property rights of two innocent people.'
Despite this, Pennsylvania treasurer and Republican gubernatorial candidate Stacy Garrity has used the incident as fuel for her own campaign.
In a post on Valentine's Day, she shared a fake Valentine's card that featured a picture of Shapiro and said: 'I love you more than I love my neighbor's yard.'
Attorneys for the Shapiros and Mocks did not respond to the Daily Mail's requests for comment.
