Supreme Court appears divided over constitutionality of fees and incarceration for unhomed individuals sleeping in public places.
Last week the Supreme Court considered the merit of a local ordinance banning homeless individuals camping in public places. The case could have a broad impact on how local governments and states respond to high rates of homelessness that have resulted in more encampments on public property.
The law was passed by the City of Grant Pass, Oregon and essentially penalizes individuals for sleeping in public spaces, including parks. If the law is violated, it carries a $295 fine that, if not paid, increased to more than $530. Repeat offenders could also be jailed for up to 30 days.
A federal judge blocked the ordinance in 2022, when the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that the city’s ordinance violated the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment because it imposed criminal penalties for homeless people sleeping outside or on public property when they do not have access to a shelter. Grant Pass appealed their case to the Supreme Court and those deliberations began this week. Most of the discussion revolved around whether the state of being homeless qualified as a protected status and what the shelter capacity of the city was relative to the population of unhomed individuals.
The case is likely to be decided in June.
