Abcarian: Criminalizing homelessness is unconscionable, but is it unconstutitional?
by Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times— On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments about whether a small Oregon city can cite and prosecute homeless people for sleeping in public places when they have nowhere else to lay their heads. If the case reveals nothing else about the state of our country, it reveals this: We continue to fail the homeless people who live among us, and no single court ruling in the world is going to solve the underlying issues — the lack of affordable housing, widespread income equality, substance abuse...
Los Angeles Times—Opinion: I once lived in my car and can't fathom criminalizing homelessness. I’ve been homeless. Twice. I faced a dilemma in those situations that more than 650,000 Americans experience on any given day: “Where am I going to sleep tonight?” The legal battles over criminalizing homelessness seem completely disconnected from that reality. It’s a feeling I will never forget. In 2013, after my $2,500-a-month lease expired, I was looking for a home in Santa Monica. The previous lease was not affordable; I needed something more in a single dad’s budget. And I needed space for...
KSNT News—‘My heart breaks’: TRM on the reality of criminalizing homelessness in Topeka. TOPEKA (KSNT) - La Manda Broyles with the Topeka Rescue Mission met with the morning crew to talk about their Street Reach surveys, the impact of Topeka's City ordinance, and what the Supreme Court's homeless case could mean for those in the community. The Rescue Mission Executive Director touched on the city's ordinance, saying it []
WMDT—DE Homelesss advocates react to SCOTUS Case that could criminalize homelessness. DELAWARE – The Supreme Court of the United States is weighing a case on whether homelessness can be criminalized, giving local governments broad authority to dismantle homeless encampments and levy criminal charges against occupants on public land. Advocates for the homeless in Delaware including Shepherd’s Office in Georgetown say, that making those who live in tent cities criminals won’t make