General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSkid Row Wins!
Read all about it . . . tomorrow!
The L.A City Council has been debating extending Municipal Code 56.11 to homeless residents for a year or so. The current ordinance applies to merchants blocking the sidewalks with bulky merchandise displays.
Mayor Garcetti signed an amended ordinance that would prohibit homeless residents in L.A. from possessing more than a large trash bin of personal property on city property.
The Legal Aid and pro bono lawyers working with LACAN (a Skid Row homeless advocacy organization) were granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting enforcement of the ordinance.
The ordinance, referred to as the bulk property law, would have allowed the LAPD to seize and destroy all of the property of any homeless resident who had acquired too much property. No notice of violation was required. If a LAPD officer determined you possesed excessive property you could be cuffed and incarcerated and all of your personal property could be disposed of.
Imagine being limited to the total amount of property that would fit in a large residential trash bin that you push out to the curb for pick up. All of your clothing, bedding, food and day to day survival goods had to fit inside or you were in violation and the LAPD/Street Services patrol could immediately throw your property in a dumpster and drive off.
No judge or hearing. A cop says you have too much stuff and it all gets tossed in the dump truck for disposal. That was the L.A. City Council and L.A. Mayor's solution to the "homeless crisis". A city wide cleen sweep leaving homeless residents with the clothes on their back.
Read all about it tomorrow in The L.A. Slimes. Or google LACAN (Los Angeles Community Action Network).
dreamnightwind
(4,775 posts)Seems heartless. Sadly it isn't that uncommon in northern California (don't know about elsewhere) for the cops to roust homeless encampments, and my understanding is that when they do, they often throw away all of their possessions. Unbelievable.
I read a terrifying article on the coming wave of unemployment that will be caused by the automation of millions of jobs. It is time to seriously consider something like a minimum income, so all people will have their survival needs guaranteed. This country can afford it, we just have to stop the great dragons from hoarding all of the wealth and sitting on it.
We'll need to construct incentive for working low-end jobs rather than just accepting the minimum income, but a decent society would be one that guarantees the necessities of life for all.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)April 13, 2016, 7:05 PM
A federal judge Wednesday issued a preliminary injunction barring Los Angeles police and sanitation officers from seizing and destroying homeless people's property without sufficient notice, and ordered the city to segregate and store impounded belongings where they can be recovered.
U.S. District Court Judge S. James Otero, in his ruling, said the city can confiscate or destroy contraband, crime evidence and hazardous material or rat-infested property that posed public health and safety issues.
But, he added, "The city, in many instances, appears to be confiscating all property, without differentiating the types of property at issue or giving homeless people a meaningful opportunity to separate essential medications or medical equipment from their other property."
"Some of the individual defendants appeared to take away property from a person lying on the sidewalk, visibly suffering physical pain," the judge said.
...
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-homeless-injunction-20160413-story.html
Peace Patriot
(24,010 posts)and for the advocates of the homeless for their work on this case.
Time to bring heart and compassion into our laws and courtrooms. It's wonderful to see an example of this. Let there be more of it!
Thanks for picking up the link to the story. What the LAPD was doing was straight up armed robbery.
Heeeeers Johnny
(423 posts)KamaAina
(78,249 posts)winstars
(4,220 posts)the issue???