"Nearly three years ago, Steven Bass' tent led to a police ticket - a ticket that led to a trial, an appeal denied and 160-day sentence in El Paso County jail. Bass, the first person cited under Colorado Springs' camping ban, remains mired in a legal battle backed by a University of Denver assistant professor working for free."
Denver Post column on the latest NLCHP report.
The NLCHP has released a new version of their report on the criminalization of homelessness based on a survey of 187 American cities. This is the 11th edition of the report; the last one was released in 2011.
"The report shines a spotlight on the fact that still far too many cities criminalize the basic life actions that homeless people have no choice but to perform in public."
Denver Homeless Out Loud and the Catholic Workers both get mentions in this article on tiny homes.
"The city bans anyone from living in an RV, and people who break that rule often encounter the same hassles as do homeless people who sleep in their cars: tickets, harassment, and orders to pack up and move on."
LA and Palo Alto have joined the list of cities where it is illegal to sleep in a car.
LAPD shot to death a homeless man in Hollywood while I was writing my essay about police who kill the homeless.
"On that morning three officers from Raleigh Police Department prevented us from doing our work, for the first time ever. An officer said, quite bluntly, that if we attempted to distribute food, we would be arrested."
The Denver Post also reports "Six arrested in downtown Denver Protest": http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_25505064/six-arrested-downtown-denver-protest
There was also a "not one more deportation" pro-immigration march scheduled earlier in the afternoon on Saturday, but I haven't seen any reporting on it. I guess no one got arrested.
“I’m just simply baffled by the idea that people can be without shelter in a country, and then be treated as criminals for being without shelter.”
In 2012 Boulder's city council made sleeping in public a non-jailable offense in an attempt to exclude the accused from jury trials. But now that a judge has ruled the homeless are still entitled to a jury, the city council has voted to increase the penalty to include jail time again.
"A protest group called “Occupy Denver” that used to protest in downtown Denver and in public areas has now reverted to a different tactic — descending on a quiet Denver neighborhood every Sunday afternoon and protesting outside the private home of a Denver business leader whose organization supported Denver’s urban camping ban"
Apparently The Denver Post Editorial Board thinks it is okay to harass and arrest the propertyless for sleeping, but rent-seeking CEOs should be left alone. Good thing The Denver Post is keeping an eye on the situation, otherwise who would lookout for the interests of the rich and powerful?
"The ban makes it illegal to camp on public and private property in Denver. The City Council voted 9-4 to pass the ban in 2012."
"A controversial ordinance banning urban camping may increase vulnerability to trafficking in the state of Colorado. The ban was passed by the Denver City Council in May 2012 and essentially criminalizes homeless individuals sleeping on the streets."
"On Monday November 4th, 2013 Nichole, a woman experiencing homelessness in Denver, went to court for a ticket issued to her for “unlawful camping.” She was given this ticket while lying on her blanket under the “pillars” in Civic Center park on a cold rainy afternoon. The description on the ticket said “unlawful camping”, but instead of citing the ordinance number for the urban camping ban, the officer cited 39-7a which is a park violation prohibiting sleep in or on a blanket in the park overnight. However, as noted, this ticket was issued in the afternoon, not at night when the park camping violation 39-7a would apply."
Coverage from Chris Steele: "The one woman revolution Janet Matzen who organized against the restaurant Snooze got another victory when The Palm recently reversed its position on the Urban Camping Ban in Denver."
Portland uses prisoners to help clear out a camp protesting the criminalization of homelessness.
Portland to evict a politically-conscious homeless camp.