AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González.

Four people were arrested Wednesday in the Bed-Stuy neighborhood in Brooklyn after gathering in support of Carmella Charrington, a resident fighting eviction from her longtime family home. Supporters gathered in front of a brownstone on Jefferson Avenue as marshals arrived to carry out the eviction. When they couldn’t get through, police were called.

Brooklyn Councilmember Chi Ossé was among those police arrested. He was wrestled to the ground and handcuffed as protesters chanted, “Who do you serve? Who do you protect?”

PROTESTERS: Who do you serve? Who do you protect? Who do you serve? Who do you protect?

PROTESTER 1: You are being violent. You are being violent. You are being violent. We’re not doing anything. This is a peaceful — 

POLICE OFFICER: Back up!

PROTESTER 2: Stop! Stop! [bleep] stop!

PROTESTER 3: Stop!

AMY GOODMAN: Homeowner Carmella Charrington and local housing advocates say the sale of her property to investors in 2024 was a form of deed theft, a criminal practice where predatory speculators use forgery, deceit or fraud to illegally transfer ownership on paper and sell properties without the knowledge or full understanding of rightful owners. Bedford-Stuyvesant is a rapidly gentrifying, historically Black neighborhood where elderly homeowners are often targeted by speculators. From 2014 to 2023, officials reported 1,500 complaints of deed theft in Brooklyn alone.

The new owners of the brownstone, 227 Group LLC, call the allegations of deed theft “unequivocally false,” pointing to the decisions of two New York state judges and the conclusion of the Attorney General’s Office, which called it a “complex property dispute” rather than deed theft.

But advocates for Ms. Charrington, including New York City Councilmember Ossé, say residents should not be evicted until all legal avenues have been exhausted. He’s calling for a moratorium on evictions in cases where deed theft is suspected. Just this morning, Mayor Zohran Mamdani established the Office of Deed Theft Prevention, saying, quote, “The theft of a home is the theft of a family’s future.”

For more, we are joined by New York City Councilmember Chi Ossé in New York.

Thanks so much for being with us. Can you start off by talking about why you were arrested and why you were there in Bed-Stuy this week?

CHI OSSÉ: Well, first and foremost, good morning, Amy. Thank you so much for having me on.

When I got a call from my constituent, Ms. Charrington, she called in panic. The marshals were at her door. She’s a grandmother. There was a 7-month child that was in the house. As a councilmember and also as a human being, I found it to be my responsibility to show up and see how I could support, at least delay the eviction of her and her family.

When I arrived on the scene, there were marshals, there were police officers. A crowd began to grow. More officers arrived at the scene. I tried to talk to the marshal to see if we could buy some time. I engaged in multiple conversations with Ms. Charrington and her lawyer to see if we could present a stay on evictions.

When the marshals started moving in, in my soul, I could not let that take place. I could not see a family, a Black family within Bed-Stuy, removed from a home. So I stood in front of the house. The marshal, several officers, you know, approached me, attempted to arrest me, body-slammed me on the ground, cuffed me and brought me into a police vehicle, which drove me to the local precinct.

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And, Councilman, could you talk about this whole — this whole issue of deed theft and the role of conservators and this particular group, 227 Group LLC, which has bought, so far, 119 properties in Black and Latino neighborhoods?

CHI OSSÉ: Absolutely. So, as we see neighborhoods like Bed-Stuy, Southeast Queens, Harlem become more desirable in the eyes of real estate companies and real estate brokers, we’re seeing a rise in deed theft across our communities. Deed theft is basically the practice of stealing one’s home through paper, using fraudulent schemes of forging signatures or using even family members as a means to steal or occupy one’s home, to then sell it for millions of dollars. Again, as these properties are becoming more expensive, as more folks, white folks, are moving into these neighborhoods, these homes are seen as more desirable and lucrative for these real estate institutions. And that’s why deed theft has been rising. That’s why communities like mine have not only been seeing rampant displacement and gentrification, but also an attack on homeowners to force them out of their homes.

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And could you talk, as well, about a particular Brooklyn attorney, 68-year-old Sanford Solny, who was convicted last year of 13 counts of third-degree criminal possession of stolen property? He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for stealing 11 deeds. What’s the significance of his case?

CHI OSSÉ: Well, first and foremost, two-and-a-half years is not nearly enough that someone should be convicted for for stealing multiple homes within New York City, or anywhere, for that fact. He is just one of the many examples of those who are participating in deed theft. There have only been, you know, a couple folks who have been held accountable and been brought to justice. But there are more deed thieves who are out there. Many of these schemes are complicated and complex, which is why some of these cases take so long to process and why so many of these individuals and deed thieves who are participating in deed theft are not brought to justice for some time. He is just one of the many who we are advocating to do lock-up. You know, these are individuals who are participating in violent, violent evictions of homeowners. And we saw an example of that taking place a couple days ago.

AMY GOODMAN: And, Chi Ossé, your response to Mayor Zohran Mamdani today establishing the Office of Deed Theft Prevention, saying, quote, “The theft of a home is the theft of a family’s future.” What exactly will this mean? What kind of resources are going to be put into this office?

CHI OSSÉ: Absolutely. So, before I endorsed Zohran as mayor last year, I had a conversation with him and his team, multiple conversations with him and his team, about how important deed theft was to me and my constituency. He made a pledge on the campaign trail to make an investment in opening a mayor’s office to prevent deed theft. And today he’s fulfilling that promise.

And we’ve been working with his office over the past couple of weeks of what this office would look like. Generally, it will circumvent communication between the various different city agencies through the State Attorney General’s Office, as well as different district attorney’s offices, and making sure that we’re not only preventing deed theft and doing educational campaigns for homeowners alike who are worried about how they could be victims of deed theft, but we’ll also be providing them with resources on how to defend against deed theft, looking into how we could hire experienced attorneys who could fight back against these cases. A lot of the cases that we see when it comes to deed theft and when victims come to our office, there’s a passing of the buck of who’s responsible for holding these deed thieves accountable. This office will circumvent all of that communication and making sure that we are addressing the root cause of this problem and identifying who can truly enforce and prevent deed theft from taking place within our communities.

AMY GOODMAN: Chi Ossé, I want to thank you for being with us, New York City councilmember arrested this week as he tried to stop the displacement of a woman in Bed-Stuy from her home. Thank you.

Coming up, Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed. Professor Quinn Slobodian looks at the ideology of Elon Musk.

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AMY GOODMAN: Billy Bragg singing “Tomorrow’s Going to Be a Better Day” in our Democracy Now! studio back in New York. I’m Amy Goodman in Seattle for the opening of the film about Democracy Now!, Steal This Story, Please! Juan González is in Chicago, where we’ll be headed soon.