Judge releases 81-year-old hermit 'River Dave' from jail after saying the squatter can no longer return to his beloved rural shack subject to property dispute because it was destroyed by fire

A squatter hermit lauded as a folk hero over a property dispute has been released from jail after a judge said the fiery destruction of his home meant there was no risk of him returning to it.  

David Lidstone, 81, was freed from Merrimack County Jail, in Boscawen on Thursday under the condition that he not return to his beloved shack near the Merrimack River in New Hampshire. It was razed to the ground by an unexplained blaze on Wednesday. 

Lidstone's pal Jodie Gedeon picked him up from Merrimack County Jail on Thursday, and told WMUR: 'It was overwhelming with joy, it was ... I don't even know if I could put it into words.'

She said that Lidstone is currently staying with a friend, and that he has been flooded with donations and offers from well-wishers.

That has raised hopes the elderly eccentric may be allowed to live out the rest of his days in another off-the-grid backwater.

Gedeon explained: 'Now that Dave's out, we can talk to him, figure out the next plan, and just see what to do it's not just monetary, people have reached out offering their cabins, their land for Dave to live in.' 

Lidstone's 27 year-old property was obliterated by flames amid an ongoing dispute between Lidstone - known as River Dave - and landowner Leonard Giles.  The shack had solar panels but no mains electricity, with a probe into its destruction underway.

Lidstone, who locals know as 'River Dave,' became lauded as a folk hero following his arrest on July 15 for he refusing to leave his make-shift camp. 

He had vowed to stay in jail rather than accept Giles' claims in the civil contempt sanction which saw him imprisoned, but has now been freed, amid warnings from friends that the destruction of Lidstone's shack will kill him. 

David Lidstone, left, also known as 'River Dave' left Merrimack County Jail accompanied by his friend, Jodie Gedeon, on Thursday 

Lidstone's cabin burned down on Wednesday while he was making his court appearance.  It is located in the woods of New Hampshire near the Merrimack River

Lidstone had been arrested on July 15 for squatting at the property for 27 years

The property owner, Leonard Giles, 86, of South Burlington, Vermont, wanted Lidstone off the property.

The fire marshal's office said it is investigating the blaze, but deferred questions to the Canterbury Fire Department. 

Lt. Dave Nelson of Canterbury Fire said he expects the investigation to take a few days and there were no updates available about its cause on Thursday.

'We just had the fire yesterday, it takes a while,' Nelson said.

Jodie Gedeon, an avid kayaker who befriended Lidstone about 20 years ago, said 'people were just devastated' about the news of the fire.

But she said they are not abandoning efforts to solve Lidstone's dilemma including working out some compromise with Giles. 

A GoFundMe was started on Thursday to help raise $10,000 to help him find a new home. The AP reported that Lidstone has received several offers for new places to live across the U.S.  

Lidstone enjoyed live in the woods as a hermit for nearly three decades. He would often greet kayakers along the rive, which earned him the nickname 'River Dave' 

The wooden, two-level A-frame cabin is near the Muchyedo Bank and in between the Merrimack River and Interstate 93

Lidstone was in dispute with the owner of the property over his squatting. His cabin housed all his belongings and was solar powered

'They just can't believe it happened. We felt like we had a little bit of hope,' she said of the recent court hearing. 'We thought the land owner and David would come to agreement. One option was to lease that portion of land to Dave. Bring it up to code. We felt that would be a realistic resolution if the two men would agree.'

A first cousin of Lidstone, Horace Clark of Milton, Vermont, agrees he should be allowed to remain on the property, where he has a small cabin adorned with solar panels. Lidstone has grown his own food, cut his own firewood, and tended to his pets and chickens.

The woodlot Lidstone called home was just a few miles away from Interstate 93. But it was hidden by the trees; it´s on 73 acres that have been used for timber harvests. The property has been owned by the same family since 1963. There are no plans at this time to develop it.

'Leave the guy alone. He´s not harming anybody,' Clark said. 'If he wasn´t a problem in 27 years, he is not going to be a problem now.'

But Giles´ attorney Lisa Snow Wade said there are no discussions around allowing Lidstone to remain on the property.

'I did speak with Jodie Gedeon this morning who raised the idea of a lease, but I explained to her that we had considered this idea in the past when Mr. Lidstone had counsel, and we all concluded that it did not change the liability of the landowner to the town for having someone living in an illegal structure on the property,' she said in an email interview.

The other option for Lidstone would be to relocate to another parcel of land, a real possibility given that Gedeon has received about 20 offers from Maine, New Hampshire and as far as California. Many of those offers resulted from the media coverage of Lidstone's plight.

Property owner Leonard Giles, 86, of South Burlington, Vermont, filed a complaint against Lindstone in 2016

He claimed that he didn´t even know Lidstone was there until the town administrator found out in 2015 and told him 

Dave had been lauded as a local folk hero for his defiance to leave his cabin.

A petition on Change.org in support of Lindstone  has garnered 2,500 signatures and counting as of Wednesday morning.

'It tells me that people have compassion and humanity and don't agree with what happens,' Gedeon said, adding she planned to discuss options with Lidstone in a jailhouse phone call Thursday night.

Lidstone told a judge during the Wednesday court appearance that he had no desire to comply with the order to leave the cabin. Most of his possessions were removed from it before the fire.

Lidstone, who is originally from Maine, also said the cabin was not a proper home but rather a hunting and fishing camp. He doesn't have an attorney for his court case. Another hearing in the case is scheduled for next week, though it was unclear how the case would be altered by the loss of the cabin.

'You came with your guns, you arrested me, brought me in here, you´ve got all my possessions. You keep ´em,' Lidstone told a judge during the court appearance. 'I´ll sit here with your uniform on until I rot, sir.'