Stiffer criminal penalties, street camping ban take effect as part of Safer Kentucky Act

A controversial bill that supporters dubbed the the Safer Kentucky Act takes effect Monday, with critics again voicing concerns about potential consequences, while some local officials say they expect little to change.

The wide-ranging bill, sponsored by Republican Rep. Jared Bauman of Louisville, includes an array of measures aimed at reforming the state's criminal laws — from introducing new mandatory prison sentencing requirements to outlawing street camping.

And while supporters say the bill will improve public safety, others believe it could overload the state's correctional institutions and criminalize homelessness."It's just the overall tone that it sets for our commonwealth that scares me the most," said Marcus Jackson, executive director of the nonprofit Advocacy Based on Lived Experience.

While it may take time to see how the bill plays out, here's what some stakeholders have to say about its potential impacts.

Stiffer criminal penalties mean longer prison sentences

For years, Jackson has fought to increase rights and amplify the voices of people who've been formerly incarcerated — drawing on his personal experiences.

As a teenager, Jackson was first arrested and later convicted of charges in connection to a shooting he maintains he had no involvement in.

"I had never been in any trouble prior to my incarceration," Jackson said. "I had never been exposed to half the things that I was exposed to during my period of incarceration."

After his release from prison, Jackson rotated in and out of the criminal justice system, with two sentences related to drug charges, before he began his advocacy work.

"People want to consider it a success story," he said. "No, I think it's a failure. I think 20 years of trying to overcome the effects of laws like this could have been avoided without it."

Jackson has expressed concerns over the Safer Kentucky Act, specifically as it stiffens penalties for many criminal offenses.

The law calls for a life sentence in prison for individuals found guilty of three separate violent crimes. It also raises charges related to fleeing from police from misdemeanors to felonies, with people convicted on those charges now required to serve at least 50 percent of their sentence.

Additionally, the law strengthens penalties for gun-related offenses. A convicted offender must now serve their full sentence if they used a firearm "in furtherance of the crime" while having been previously convicted of a felony; knew or should have known the firearm was stolen; or were on conditional release following a conviction of a violent felony offense.

In Jackson's perspective, the mandatory sentencing provisions will not lead to an offender's rehabilitation. Instead, he believes they will instill a feeling of "hopelessness" amongst those who are incarcerated and will lead to "more trauma within prison."

Jackson believes the new law also takes away a judge's discretion when it comes to imposing sentencing in their community.

"A bill like this coming from Frankfort is going to impact the way that our judges are able to sentence and properly rehabilitate offenders in their community, and that's always a nightmare," he said.

Shameka Parrish-Wright, director of advocacy group VOCAL-KY and a member of the Louisville Metro Council, added harsher penalties will likely increase incarceration and overburden the already crowded prison system.

However, while longer sentencing may lead to more convicted offenders flooding Kentucky's prisons, Maj. Jason Logsdon with Louisville Metro Department of Corrections said the law isn't expected to have as direct of an impact on the city's jail.

In early June, the inmate population hovered around 1,200, about a hundred less than the facility's max capacity.

"As far as overcrowding, LMDC leadership is always mindful on managing our population in the safest and most effective way possible no matter how many folks are incarcerated here," Logsdon said. "We will continue to work with our community partners as well as our law enforcement partners in managing any issues that may arise."

Will street camping ban lead to criminalizing homelessness?

The Safer Kentucky Act outlaws “unlawful camping” on public and private property, in parks and other locations without permission. The first offense is a violation, which can be punished with a fine, while subsequent offenses are Class B misdemeanors, which can be punished with fines and prison time.

The Courier Journal asked Louisville Metro Police how the department plans to enforce the new provision, but LMPD did not respond by the time of publishing.

In Lexington, police spokesman Hannah Sloan said in a statement that the Safer Kentucky Act "is not expected to significantly change the Lexington Police Department's approach, especially when interacting with Lexington's unhoused community."

Sloan added the department will continue to work with city and community partners to offer support and resources to those experiencing homelessness.

"Officers can make arrests for criminal acts — such as trespassing, but we do not believe a significant increase in arrests will be made under this new law," Sloan said in an email. "This new law allows officers to use their discretion. We trust our officers to make the right decisions and trust that the actions they take will be justified."

Critics, however, say the provision criminalizes homelessness and doesn’t address its root causes.

Susan Buchino, executive director of Community Advocates for Resources and Empowerment at the Arthur Street Hotel , which offers low-barrier shelter and support services to people experiencing homelessness, said punishing people for a systemic failure doesn’t solve any problems.

“Homelessness is a community level problem, and it requires community level solutions,” she said. “And this community has not been willing to make hard decisions to make it a community level solution.”

Buchino said instead, the legislature should have addressed the ongoing affordable housing crisis and funded services that help people experiencing homelessness.

Louisville also has already taken an aggressive stance against homeless camps and clears them on a routine basis , which Buchino says makes it difficult to ensure unhoused people are connected to resources.

“It will continue to become more and more difficult to provide services to people who are unsheltered because we don't have enough (shelter) space for everybody in the city,” she said.

Louisville has five emergency homeless shelters, but they are almost always full, according to data from the Louisville Coalition from the Homeless.

Buchino said she is also concerned about families who are are unsheltered and whether they'll be separated.

“We don't have a system that supports people that meets their basic needs,” she said. “We do not pay enough in living wages. We do not have affordable housing. And then we're going to punish people for those things, including moms with babies who are just trying to give their kids the food and the rest that they need to learn and play and grow up to healthy adulthood.”

Reach reporter Rachel Smith at rksmith@courierjournal.com or @RachelSmithNews on X, formerly known as Twitter. Reach reporter Hannah Pinski at @hpinski@courier-journal.com or follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @hannahpinski.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Stiffer criminal penalties, street camping ban take effect as part of Safer Kentucky Act