City to Pass Law Allowing Cops to Seize Homeless People's Belongings

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida is about to codify the total disregard for the property rights of the homeless into law. As Scott Keyes writes in Think Progress, the city is close to passing a measure that would prohibit keeping personal items in public. Police would be able to seize personal belongings after a 24-hour notice, but if they decide the materials pose a threat to public safety, health or welfare, officers can take them without prior notice and just leave a note. The city keeps confiscated property for 30 days (7 days if it's deemed a safety risk). Anyone who wants their things back before they're disposed of must prove ownership and compensate the city for its trouble, paying “reasonable charges for storage and removal of the items,” according to the language of the measure (the fee could be waived if they prove they can't pay it).

As Keyes points out, the city cites its "interest in aesthetics" as one justification for the measure. The importance of pleasing visuals aside, opponents point out that homeless people don't choose to keep their stuff in public to mess up the scenery but because they don't have homes to store it.

As the Sun Sentinel reports:

Jeff Weinberger of the Broward Homeless Campaign said the homeless "don't have a choice but to keep their stuff outside."

"How does this help? How does this not exemplify cruelty?" Weinberger said. "People need their stuff. Homeless people have little enough."

The city is just getting started. They're also in the process of crafting legislation that would limit the activities of groups who feed the hungry, ban panhandling at intersections and prohibit sleeping on public property, the Sun Sentinel reports. As advocates for the homeless point out, making it against the law to engage in life-sustaining activities on the street without providing alternatives essentially makes it a crime to be homeless.

http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/city-pass-law-allowing-cops-seize-homeless-peoples-belongings

Edited April 23, 2014 by Porterhouse

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Homeless people have their rights threatened? They just need to find ways to steal (in the six to seven figure range) from the American people and an army of armed thugs will rush to their defense. It's how it works these days in America as the country turns totally insane.

[decocker 7,198]

i bet jesus is so friggin proud of florida.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

They should start charging them transient taxes, same as any campground or hotel. If they don't pay, they can't go to sleep until they panhandle enough change or recycle enough cans and bottles to pay the tax.

[novedsac 355]

I work with a large soup kitchen in my city. There are a large number of homeless people here. Quite a large number do NOT want to live in the available shelters because they complain about the rules being too strict - they don't like having to be in by a certain time, they complain about not being able to drink when they want to, etc., etc. There are resources available that they do not pursue.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

I believe most homeless people are crazy; I remember reading that 1/3 of homeless men and 2/3 of homeless women have schizophrenia. So how do rules about drinking and curfew actually help them? They need serious help, meds, etc, not bandaids like strict rules. I bet many of them know they will break the rules because they actually cannot do it. They are too crazy to straighten up and fly right.

[novedsac 355]

I believe most homeless people are crazy; I remember reading that 1/3 of homeless men and 2/3 of homeless women have schizophrenia. So how do rules about drinking and curfew actually help them? They need serious help, meds, etc, not bandaids like strict rules. I bet many of them know they will break the rules because they actually cannot do it. They are too crazy to straighten up and fly right.

Yeah, based on my interactions, I would agree. All the more reason they shouldn't be on the streets.

I believe the rules in the shelters are to povide order and safety for those that are there - and there are many, in our local shelters anyway, that cater to familes with children that are transitioning from one situation to another.

[decocker 7,198]

There are more than five times as many vacant homes in the U.S. as there are homeless people, according to Amnesty International USA. Since 2007, banks have shuttered about 8 million American houses, almost doubling the previous number, while 3.5 million homeless shiver in the cold. Experts expect 8 million to 10 million more foreclosures in the years ahead. —ARK

https://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/more_vacant_homes_than_homeless_in_us_20111231

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

i bet jesus is so friggin proud of florida.

Word on the street is that he'll set-up shop in Ft. Lauderdale upon his return.

[decocker 7,198]

Word on the street is that he'll set-up shop in Ft. Lauderdale upon his return.

that would make jesus an illegal. le gasp.

we can't stand for that. jesus will surely return to earth as an independantly wealthy, american citizen. perferably white.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

that would make jesus an illegal. le gasp.

we can't stand for that. jesus will surely return to earth as an independantly wealthy, american citizen. perferably white.

Jesus just is white, okay? He just is.

This was proven recently in this forum, where one member claimed that since David was called "red," that could only mean he was pale and sunburned easily. Red can't mean anything else, obviously. So David passed on this gene all the way down through patrilineal lineage to Joseph. But Joseph did not give his DNA to Jesus, because Jesus was born by immaculate conception and is God's son.

That was the proof given. Irrefutable!

[JohnR! 5,495]

Jesus just is white, okay? He just is.

This was proven recently in this forum, where one member claimed that since David was called "red," that could only mean he was pale and sunburned easily. Red can't mean anything else, obviously. So David passed on this gene all the way down through patrilineal lineage to Joseph. But Joseph did not give his DNA to Jesus, because Jesus was born by immaculate conception and is God's son.

That was the proof given. Irrefutable!

[decocker 7,198]

Jesus just is white, okay? He just is.

This was proven recently in this forum, where one member claimed that since David was called "red," that could only mean he was pale and sunburned easily. Red can't mean anything else, obviously. So David passed on this gene all the way down through patrilineal lineage to Joseph. But Joseph did not give his DNA to Jesus, because Jesus was born by immaculate conception and is God's son.

That was the proof given. Irrefutable!

so we've got the white part down, now if we can just make sure he comes back with the right passport.

dem eyes, love muh nordic jesus.

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

Jesus just is white, okay? He just is.

This was proven recently in this forum, where one member claimed that since David was called "red," that could only mean he was pale and sunburned easily. Red can't mean anything else, obviously. So David passed on this gene all the way down through patrilineal lineage to Joseph. But Joseph did not give his DNA to Jesus, because Jesus was born by immaculate conception and is God's son.

That was the proof given. Irrefutable!

Megan Kelly, is that you?

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

so we've got the white part down, now if we can just make sure he comes back with the right passport.

Well, I believe that the Mormons believe that Jesus came to America after he was resurrected, and left some golden tablets in the mountains of New York state, which called upon people to make a utopia in the new world (but just the America part, or Mexico if America won't allow polygamy). So, I think Jesus is already here, chillin' out!