Oregon town's policing of homeless heads to Supreme Court

It's a case that started in a public park in southern Oregon, and now it's going in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. The decision the justices make could impact how homelessness is handled across the country — including whether to give law enforcement the ability to cite or arrest people for sleeping on public property.

The goal: use food and conversation to build trust with unhoused people that will lead them to accept services like health care, addiction treatment and housing. "I don't know if there was any real point where it all of a sudden became an issue. It seems like it was just a very slow evolution to get to where we're at today," he said."That's one of the more common questions I get is like, 'Hey, how is the homeless population really? Is it, is it really that big of a problem?'"

"Do we want to live in communities where we all help each other to try to find a safe place to live? Or do we want to live in a community where we punish and arrest and jail the victims of our failed housing policies because they have nowhere else to go?" said Ed Johnson, the director of litigation at the Oregon Law Center which is representing the homeless.

Law Law Latest News, Law Law Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Will the Supreme Court Uphold the 14th Amendment and Block an Oregon Law Criminalizing Homelessness?With the gap between the richest and poorest Americans growing, the justices will hear oral argument on Monday in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson.
Source: Slate - 🏆 716. / 51 Read more »

Rural Oregon city asks Supreme Court if homeless people can be fined for sleeping outsideThe rural city of Grants Pass in southern Oregon has become the unlikely face of the nation's homelessness crisis as its case over anti-camping laws goes to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Source: KSLcom - 🏆 549. / 51 Read more »

Can homeless people be fined for sleeping outside?A rural Oregon city is asking the US Supreme Court for an answer.
Source: adndotcom - 🏆 293. / 63 Read more »

Rural Oregon city asks Supreme Court if homeless people be fined for sleeping outsideThe rural city of Grants Pass in southern Oregon has become the unlikely face of the nation's homelessness crisis as its case over anti-camping laws goes to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Source: KSLcom - 🏆 549. / 51 Read more »

Justice Thomas misses Supreme Court session Monday with no explanationSupreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is absent from the court Monday with no explanation.
Source: ksatnews - 🏆 442. / 53 Read more »

Justice Thomas misses Supreme Court session Monday with no explanationSupreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is absent from the court Monday with no explanation.
Source: wjxt4 - 🏆 246. / 63 Read more »