Chicago homeowners who fought alleged squatters now face foreclosure: 'I can't sleep at night'

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A Chicago couple whose battle to remove an alleged squatter from their South Side property helped spur a change in Illinois law now say they are at risk of losing the same home to foreclosure.

Marcia and Carlon Lee spent months fighting to reclaim a house that they said had been occupied by Shermaine Powell-Gillard and her boyfriend. After the I-Team's investigation aired last year, Powell-Gillard was arrested and later pleaded guilty to theft.

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Powell-Gillard was sentenced to 24 months probation and 50 hours of community service.

The Lees eventually regained possession of the property, but Marcia Lee said their financial challenges did not end there.

"When we did get her out of the home, she destroyed the home," Lee said.

Lee said the couple fell behind on their mortgage while dealing with the occupied property and later paying for repairs needed to get the house back on the market.

Now, the couple has been served with a foreclosure notice.

"We are fighting with the mortgage company," Lee said.

According to Lee, she remained in regular contact with a representative from the lender while the property was being repaired.

"I've talked to this rep every single week. I let him know we were going to be late on the mortgage because the property is damaged and we have to fix it up," she said. "He told me, 'Keep us abreast, Marcia. We're going to do our best to help you out.'"

Lee said she believed the lender would work with the couple as they recovered from the damage and financial strain associated with the property. Instead, she said, the foreclosure process is continuing.

"It has put me in a position where I can't sleep at night," Lee said.

Since the Lees' ordeal began, Illinois law has changed. A new law that took effect Jan. 1 gives law enforcement new authority to remove someone illegally staying in a home once a property owner can establish their right to the property.

Lee said her family's experience, along with those of several other homeowners who contacted the I-Team, helped build support for the legislation.

"We got this law passed, which we were grateful for that. But to go through the things that we went through to get the law passed, it's very stressful," Lee said.

While the new law may help other property owners, Lee said it cannot erase what her family experienced or the financial burdens that followed.

"I am asking them to put the payments on the back end, not relinquish the payments, just work with me," she said.

The I-Team reached out to Silver Hill Capital to ask about the foreclosure and whether the company would consider working with the Lees. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Marcia Lee said she now plans to file for bankruptcy because she believes it is her only option to try to save her home.

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