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AMENDMENTS TO THE MUNICIPAL CODE
REGARDING UNAUTHORIZED CAMPING OR
ENCAMPMENTS ON PUBLIC PROPERTY
Safety, Wellness, and Youth Committee
September 18, 2024
City Attorney’s Office
RiversideCA.gov
2 Eighth Amendment prohibited the imposition of criminal penalties for sitting, sleeping, or lying outside on public property on homeless individuals who could not obtain
shelter; while this was not to say that city had to provide sufficient shelter for the homeless, as long as there were a greater number of homeless individuals in city than the number of available beds in shelters, city could not
prosecute homeless individuals for involuntarily sitting, lying, and sleeping in public on the false premise they had some choice in the matter.
Martin v. City of Boise (9th Cir. 2019) 920 F.3d 584
BACKGROUND
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3 City ordinances which prohibited sleeping or camping on public property and which provided for progressive consequences in form of civil fines, exclusion orders, and criminal prosecution for trespass did not constitute cruel and unusual punishment when applied to individuals experiencing homelessness, even if homelessness was involuntary; sanctions were not designed to superadd terror, pain, or disgrace, sanctions were similar to usual modes for punishing offenses throughout the country, ordinances did not criminalize mere status, as ordinances could apply, for example, to backpacker passing through on vacation or a student who abandoned their dorm room to camp out in protest on lawn of municipal building, and Eighth Amendment protections did not apply to any claim of selective enforcement.
City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson (2024) 144 S.Ct. 2202
BACKGROUND
RiversideCA.gov
4 PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY RISKS
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5 PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY RISKS
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6 PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY RISKS
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7 PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY RISKS
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8 The proposed ordinance establishes that it is unlawful for any person to camp in or upon any public property.
Within two blocks of an elementary, middle, or high school citywide.
Within two blocks of any shelter citywide, provided signs are posted prohibiting camping that are clearly visible to pedestrians.
In any park citywide, provided signs are posted prohibiting camping that are clearly visible to pedestrians.
In the Wildland Urban Interface.
ORDINANCE KEY FACTS
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9 The 2023 Point-in-Time Count administered by the County of Riverside Continuum of Care reported 605 people were
experiencing unsheltered homelessness within the City, which represents a 18 percent increase from the prior year; and In 2023, Fire Rescue indicates that fire crews responded to 848 vegetation and rubbish fires in the City’s open space areas, which were all suspected to have resulted from human activity in these areas; and
The City counted approximately 730 encampments, including contacts and notices issued, along the riverbed in 2023 and collected over 267.29 tons of trash.
HOMELESS IN THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE
RiversideCA.gov
10 E‐wasteGarbage
Household Hazardous/Special
Wastes
Human and Animal Biological
Wastes
Medical Wastes, Sharps
Waste and Pharmaceutical Wastes
Combustible and Noncombustible
Rubbish
Used OilRecyclables
Abandoned VehiclesNon‐CRV Recyclables
Dead AnimalsWaste Tires
PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY
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11 Just prior to 2019, California experienced a large hepatitis A outbreak, primarily among persons experiencing
homelessness and/or using drugs in settings of limited
sanitation. (CDC website)
California - 708 Cases - 464 (66%) Hospitalization
On June 5, 2023, a 3-year-old child suffered Fentanyl exposure and stopped breathing.
The child, his 2-year-old sister, 5-year-old brother, and parents had been experiencing homelessness for the past few months and living in their car. All exposed to Fentanyl, parents died attributed to illicit drug use.
PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY
RiversideCA.gov
12 2.4. Support programs and innovations that enhance community safety, encourage neighborhood engagement, and build public trust.
6.2. Maintain, protect and improve assets and infrastructure within the City’s built environment to ensure and enhance reliability, resiliency, sustainability, and facilitate connectivity.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
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13 That the Safety, Wellness, and Youth Committee:
1. Receive a report regarding a proposed ordinance to
regulate homeless encampments throughout the City
of Riverside; and
2. Recommend that the City Council adopt the
proposed ordinance.
RECOMMENDATIONS
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