People who want more tents cleared chanted 'save our streets,' while a smaller crowd of those supporting the injunction rallied on the sidewalk besides them,...
SAN FRANCISCO — Tensions flared this week as lawyers for San Francisco argued in appellate court that the city can no longer maintain safe, clean streets while trying to get homeless people indoors after a federal judge banned the city from clearing tent encampments until there are more shelter beds than homeless individuals.
But attorneys for homeless residents who sued the city argued before the panel that the district court judge was correct to order the city to stop forcing homeless people to move their belongings and tents until there are thousands more shelter beds available. In fact, they intend to ask the same judge at a hearing Thursday to enforce the injunction.
Frustrations over homeless tents are playing out in court in other cities, largely in western U.S. states governed by the 9th circuit, which includes California and is often on the forefront of societal issues. In 2018, the appellate court ruled that homeless people cannot be punished for sleeping outdoors when there is nowhere else for them to go.
Joseph Lee, an attorney with Latham & Watkins, agreed in court that the city could cite people who refuse a shelter offer or who have shelter but prefer to sleep outdoors, as they have an alternative. But he hesitated when asked whether the mere presence of police at an encampment operation constituted a threat, saying that it depended on the situation.
Advocates for homeless people say the encampment operations merely serve to harass homeless people as there are few services and appropriate shelter beds available. They say it’s cruel and counterproductive to criminalize people for not having a place to live with affordable housing so scarce.
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