The justices on Monday will consider a challenge to rulings from a California-based appeals court that found punishing people for sleeping outside when shelter space is lacking amounts to unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment.
A political cross section of officials in the West and California, home to nearly one-third of the nation’s homeless population, argue those decisions have restricted them from “common sense” measures intended to keep homeless encampments from taking over public parks and sidewalks.
Advocacy groups say the decisions provide essential legal protections, especially with an increasing number of people forced to sleep outdoors as the cost of housing soars.
The case before the Supreme Court comes from Grants Pass, a small city nestled in the mountains of southern Oregon, where rents are rising and there is just one overnight shelter for adults. As a growing number of tents clustered its parks, the city banned camping and set $295 fines for people sleeping there.
How are they supposed to pay that fine when they are homeless, and probably jobless?
They can’t. Therefore they’ll go to jail. Our country is sick.
Great. Jails will become the new homeless shelters.
New?
Yes, but then we can put them to work in the jail for pennies and no union representation. I mean, we can’t just let them exist without making profit for someone.
“Common Sense” just means “Shut up, I don’t want to explain myself because I know I’m wrong”
You know what prevents homeless camps from taking over public parks and sidewalks ? HOMES !!!
Wonder how this Supreme Court will rule? Of courserhetorical question because they going side with city and we are about to watch the flood gates as every city especially in red states follow that city lead and start jailing homeless people.
For profit prisons are going make bank.
I hope I am wrong but 2024 shown that our government is owned by the 1%
For profit prisons are going make bank.
I had to explain to my daughter about private prisons and how the fourteenth amendment exempts prisoners and how the private prison industry benefits from that. I hate having to disillusion her about the country she lives in all the time.
It’s the Thirteenth Amendment. The Fourteenth is Civil Rights.
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."
Whoops, you are correct. I did not say which amendment it was to her at least.
More importantly, good on you for giving her the education that her school will likely omit!
Thank you!
For profit prisons are going make bank.
That would explain the legislative push. I was puzzling over what good it would do to arrest the homeless.
Which is hilariously pathetic because they will essentially pay to house them, keep 24 hour guard, dress them, pay for all their utilities, healthcare and food. It’s more expensive than to just build housing and provide relevant support for people.
So I pitch a tent in the park and get fined. I don’t pay the fine because I have no income. What are they gonna do? Put me in a building where I’ll be fed, clothed and sheltered? Pfft. Fat chance.
So back to slavery, just legal 14th Amendment slavery of homeless prison slaves.
Isn’t this the greatest country on earth. /s
13th Amendment
Right thanks. Always switch numbers around.
You see, it’s your fault if you’re poor, so arresting the poorest of the poor for their own good just makes sense. They can’t even afford bootstraps.
I remember there was a viral video to fix this problem. The rich lady in the video literally gave us the solution… buy a house! If you’re homeless, just buy a house!
My god! It’s so simple!
Yeah.
I’m in my 60’s and have never owned a house. Obviously I didn’t follow the rule book close enough.
Do you have bootstraps? Have you tried pulling on them?
Had to sell the boots to buy food.
:P
Homelessness is without a doubt a major problem that needs immediate attention but I wish they would give proper context. Homelessness was FAR worse in the 80s so these are in fact not record numbers. Also, take lessons from Mississippi on homelessness. Yes, Mississippi as they only have about 1000 people state wide who are homeless.
Homelessness was FAR worse in the 80s
Source? Is that a percentage or raw number of people you’re referring to?
20 seconds on Google. The US government estimated 200k to 500k homeless in 1987 though this is criticized as a gross underestimate as they did not record it as well as they do today. Regan policies were responsible for a dramatic increase in the mid 80s.
I failed to see how that is far worse when the numbers today are higher
The chances of a person being homeless in the mid 80s is much higher than today.
Well fuck, mind as well just kill them then for simply being homeless. /s
You’re being sarcastic, but that’s exactly the sort of thing that will happen if Trump gets elected.
Then do it, and decrease the surplus population!
-Scrooge
Oh no, they’re going to be fined, then when they can’t pay the fines they’ll be put in jail to work for a few pennies per hour. When they’re released, it’ll be under conditions guaranteed to send them back to the labor camps for more work.
The real shit sandwich here is that it’s not even fining homeless people for “illegal camping”, it’s fining them for “illegal camping” while there’s not adequate shelter available. Shelters suck ass, but the first here is that the city hasn’t even done the bare minimum to band-aid the issue before they started trying to use cops to cudgel the homeless for just existing.
