Sovereign citizens group leader accused of holding woman hostage

POLK CITY (FOX 13) - They don't believe that the laws of the land apply to them, or in paying taxes. Now, the leader of their separatist group has been arrested.

Ronnie Davis was taken into custody on Tuesday as he walked out of the Pasco County Courthouse. He was transported back to Polk County - where he lives - the following day.

In July, a Texas woman came to his house, and base of operations, in Polk City, to study under him. She told investigators that he held her hostage at gunpoint. When she finally was able to leave last month, she told law enforcement that Davis frequently told the two dozen people who live with him that the only way to leave would be "in a body bag or on crutches."

A member of his group, who would only talk to us by phone, said that never happened.

Davis and his followers have had numerous run-ins with law enforcement. They believe that many judges are misapplying the law and that the Department of Children and Families does not have the right to remove children from their parents.

The Southern Poverty Law Center tracks the Sovereign Citizen Movement.

It says sovereign groups harass government officials by filing false liens and frivolous lawsuits, and they clog up the courts with complex legal-sounding arguments that are rejected every time.