Theres no homeless right to sleep rough and the Supreme Court seems to agree
In a Supreme Court showdown Monday over whether the homeless have a “right” to camp in public, almost no one mentioned the actual victims of that crazy idea — everyone who’s not homeless.Homeless advocates, including the American Civil Liberties Union, told the court living on the streets is a “victimless” crime.Victimless?Everyone who has to step over needles and human poop and navigate around half-conscious humans on their way to work or taking their kids to school is a victim.
Every store owner whose entrance is blocked by makeshift cardboard shelters is a victim.Every family that wants to use a park and finds it cluttered with sprawling tents is a victim.The homeless are more likely than the general population to commit violent crimes.
The public has every reason to be wary.Municipalities all over the United States are watching the case, City of Grants Pass v.Johnson, which challenges a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling barring penalties for sleeping with blankets and other paraphernalia on public property.
The Ninth Circuit — known for its left-wing rulings — says these penalties amount to “cruel and unusual punishment” because the homeless have no choice.No choice is another whopper.San Francisco authorities report that 60% of homeless individuals living on the street refuse shelter when it’s offered.Here in New York City, every homeless person is guaranteed shelter.
When Mayor Adams sends outreach teams from the Department of Homeless Services to the tent encampments, a staggering 95% decline shelter and opt to stay outside.Justice Clarence Thomas got closest to this practical truth when he asked if the Grants Pass, Ore., ordinance criminalizes lacking a home or the deliberate decision to sleep rough instead of going to a shelter.A big surprise is who is siding with Grants Pass: Democratic pols including California Gov.Gavin Newsom and a long list of big blue cities except — you guessed it — New York.Grants Pass lawyers exp...