Callahan & Blaine

There are likely to be several parties in Orange County paying close attention to a federal court decision handed down this week in Idaho that ruled it unconstitutional for homeless people to be prosecuted for sleeping on public property if there is no access to a shelter.

It may well impact another federal lawsuit that was filed in January against Orange County and the cities of Costa Mesa, Anaheim and Orange on behalf of homeless people cleared from a former encampment along the Santa Ana River. The suit seeks to stop the municipalities from arresting people for camping in public areas.

The Orange County plaintiffs are represented by the Elder Law and Disability Rights Center. Attorney Brooke Weitzman of the Center told the LA Times that, “the 9th Circuit ruling should send a message,” adding that, “You cannot criminalize the homeless for eating, sleeping or sitting outside simply because they have no other shelter.”

Overseeing the Orange County case is U.S. District Judge David Carter. Regarding the recent ruling he stated that this would give him more leverage in urging the county officials to find more ways to house the homeless.