High-End Squatter Guilty of Trespass

A woman who squatted in a Kirkland home worth more than $3 million in 2010 was convicted Thursday of first-degree trespassing in Kirkland Municipal Court.

Jill Elaine Lane of Bellevue, 32, arrested in June of 2010 by Kirkland Police, was found guilty by a jury. She had taken up residence in a vacant home, at the time valued at more than $3 million, on Eighth Avenue West in the West of Market neighborhood.

Lane was sentenced to 364 days in jail with 362 days suspended, with credit for any time already served, and a $5,000 fine, with $4,750 suspended. First-degree trespassing is a gross misdemeanor.

Media reports at the time claimed Lane had showed some documents she said indicated that she owned the home.

“It was bank-owned, a super high-end house in an area that overlooks the lake,” said Kirkland Police Department spokesman Lt. Mike Murray. “It was a foreclosure.”

Murray said she stayed at the house for some weeks, perhaps a month. Kirkland Police at first were at a loss as to how to respond, but ultimately determined Lane had no authority or permission to live in the residence.

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