While indicating that they don’t wish to prosecute — or persecute — homeless individuals, Mount Airy officials say a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling discouraging their encampments does provide more law enforcement leeway in dealing with the problem.
“This does allow another tool for municipalities to use,” Police Chief Dale Watson agreed earlier this week regarding the High Court’s 6-3 decision.
“However, we still feel progressive initiatives should be used and criminalization should be the last option when other remedies have failed,” the police chief added.
The Supreme Court ruled last Friday that fining or incarcerating people for breaking anti-camping ordinances on public property when there is no shelter available does not violate the Constitution.
That decision arose from a court challenge of a case in Grants Pass, Oregon, where officials sought to ban people from sleeping outside — a regulatory option now permitted by the Supreme Court.
As a result, local governments across the country have been given the green light to cite and possibly arrest people in homeless encampments or other public spaces.
“I like the fact that the Supreme Court is allowing government to be set up at the local level,” Mayor Jon Cawley said Wednesday regarding such regulation.
He mentioned the fact that Mount Airy must follow the lead of officials in Washington and Raleigh in dealing with such issues.
“We do not feel like we, as a small municipality in North Carolina, that we have a great deal of power,” Mayor Cawley said. “We are always going to follow state and federal laws.”
In controlling homelessness, Cawley applauds the idea of officials higher-up agreeing “to leave it up to the local people to decide how they want to do that.”
No outright ban here
The homeless problem in Mount Airy has been a hot topic of discussion since last fall and become an issue for this year’s municipal election.
It has been punctuated by incidents arising on public property, including along the Granite City Greenway and other locations. In one case, a man who had been sleeping under a bridge there abducted a female subject and raped her.
The mayor acknowledged Wednesday that no local law has been passed to make tent camping in public places illegal in and of itself.
What Mount Airy has done is adopt regulations saying all “homes” — including tents — must be connected to utilities, including a potable water supply.
Cawley recalled that this came into play last year when a man found camping in trees at Blackmon Amphitheater, a city-owned facility behind the Municipal Building, was ordered to leave on that basis.
“You’re not going to get that behind the amphitheater,” Cawley said of the utility-connection requirements.
These are being used as a tool rather than arresting people on formal charges for occupying public property unless they previously have been banned from such sites.
The police chief agrees with that approach to the homeless problem.
“Our intent has never been to criminalize those who are faced with this challenge,” Watson commented, while referring to the need to utilize available treatment options for related problems such as mental illness and drug addiction.
“Our goal has always been to address the issues which impact the quality of life for our citizens.”
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