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Santa Cruz Council Members, Vice-Mayor Propose Anti-Homeless Measures After Recent Murder
City of Santa Cruz council members Ryan Coonerty, Lynn Robinson, Vice Mayor Hilary Bryant, and Homeless Services Center Director Monica Martinez announced on May 16 a set of proposals to change the city's policy on homelessness, including a proposal to, "not support any new homeless service facilities in the City of Santa Cruz." These new policy proposals come less than two weeks after the death of a woman who was stabbed while walking to work on Broadway Street by a man who had stayed at the Homeless Services Center.
The following policy proposals were announced in a press release that was published by the Santa Cruz Sentinel today:
"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Councilmembers Ryan Coonerty, Lynn Robinson, Vice Mayor Hilary Bryant and Homeless Service Center Director Monica Martinez announced a series of policy proposals following the murder of Santa Cruz resident Shannon Collins. "We believe these proposals to be common-sense and easily implemented. They reflect the conversations we have had with police, social service providers, and concerned citizens," noted Robinson, Bryant and Coonerty. “None of these proposals in and of themselves would have stopped Charles Edwards, but if adopted, these approaches will bring more accountability and targeted resources to the challenges facing our community.”
The proposals are:
(1) This year and future year's budget allocation to homeless services will require implementation of (a) an identification system (b) a registry protocol currently used in Santa Cruz motels to give police and service providers a better sense of who is using the facility, and (c) rules that prioritize services for residents of Santa Cruz County over people from outside the area – with an exception for the winter emergency shelter and victims of domestic violence who are in imminent danger. We believe that we need to meet the needs of citizens in our community first and foremost.
(2) We propose that the City designate a police officer to meet regularly with the Homeless Services Center staff to identify homeless individuals who are engaging in criminal behavior and coordinate actions.
(3) We, as councilmembers, will not support any new homeless service facilities in the City of Santa Cruz. We believe that other jurisdictions in Santa Cruz County need to share equally in the costs and location of social services.
(4) We, as councilmembers, will work with property owners of public housing to screen current and prospective tenants for serious criminal history.
(5) We are partnering with the County to continue and expand funding for mental health outreach workers.
(6) The City and the Homeless Services Center will expand the "Homeward Bound" program using San Francisco's successful model to provide more bus tickets to homeless individuals to return to communities where they have a support system.
(7) We are requesting that the County Jail return their prisoners to their community of origin upon completion of their sentence.
(8) Finally, we will ask the judicial system to provide a monthly list of offenders who have failed to appear in court, so that the City Attorney can prosecute them under the City's repeat offender law."
"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Councilmembers Ryan Coonerty, Lynn Robinson, Vice Mayor Hilary Bryant and Homeless Service Center Director Monica Martinez announced a series of policy proposals following the murder of Santa Cruz resident Shannon Collins. "We believe these proposals to be common-sense and easily implemented. They reflect the conversations we have had with police, social service providers, and concerned citizens," noted Robinson, Bryant and Coonerty. “None of these proposals in and of themselves would have stopped Charles Edwards, but if adopted, these approaches will bring more accountability and targeted resources to the challenges facing our community.”
The proposals are:
(1) This year and future year's budget allocation to homeless services will require implementation of (a) an identification system (b) a registry protocol currently used in Santa Cruz motels to give police and service providers a better sense of who is using the facility, and (c) rules that prioritize services for residents of Santa Cruz County over people from outside the area – with an exception for the winter emergency shelter and victims of domestic violence who are in imminent danger. We believe that we need to meet the needs of citizens in our community first and foremost.
(2) We propose that the City designate a police officer to meet regularly with the Homeless Services Center staff to identify homeless individuals who are engaging in criminal behavior and coordinate actions.
(3) We, as councilmembers, will not support any new homeless service facilities in the City of Santa Cruz. We believe that other jurisdictions in Santa Cruz County need to share equally in the costs and location of social services.
(4) We, as councilmembers, will work with property owners of public housing to screen current and prospective tenants for serious criminal history.
(5) We are partnering with the County to continue and expand funding for mental health outreach workers.
(6) The City and the Homeless Services Center will expand the "Homeward Bound" program using San Francisco's successful model to provide more bus tickets to homeless individuals to return to communities where they have a support system.
(7) We are requesting that the County Jail return their prisoners to their community of origin upon completion of their sentence.
(8) Finally, we will ask the judicial system to provide a monthly list of offenders who have failed to appear in court, so that the City Attorney can prosecute them under the City's repeat offender law."
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This is scapegoating. Ugly. All homeless people are not to blame for this death. The city council members should think about the needless deaths caused precisely by the lack of services, the holes in the so-called "social safety net."
What kind of homeless services director advocates for less funding to help the homeless? Seriously, get rid of Monica Martinez right NOW.
Yeah so the pissed off homless are stabbing people, so your going to piss them off more?? Great idea..... NOT!!!
These proposals are a knee-jerk reaction to community anger about a senseless murder. Just because the killer happened to be homeless, this killing is being misused to pursue a hateful, vilifying social agenda against the homeless. Where will this end?
1. I don't believe the City of Santa Cruz has the legal authority to establish an ID system and deny federally funded benefits based upon it.
2. The police screening homeless shelter applicants allows the police to persecute homeless individuals they don't like such as members of Peace Camp 2010 and Occupy Santa Cruz.
3. Giving the courts and law enforcement access to private information on the homeless might be an illegal infringement of privacy rights and a violation of due process.
The end of this campaign is putting badges on homeless people like Hitler's Nazi Germany did to those considered social deviants.
All of this is moving quickly down a slippery slope. Most of the murders reported on by the Santa Cruz Sentinel are by housed people. The City is not making it illegal to own or rent a home. This ill-considered political posturing is disturbing, tarring an entire population of the community's most vulnerable people, pandering to the hate mongers.
1. I don't believe the City of Santa Cruz has the legal authority to establish an ID system and deny federally funded benefits based upon it.
2. The police screening homeless shelter applicants allows the police to persecute homeless individuals they don't like such as members of Peace Camp 2010 and Occupy Santa Cruz.
3. Giving the courts and law enforcement access to private information on the homeless might be an illegal infringement of privacy rights and a violation of due process.
The end of this campaign is putting badges on homeless people like Hitler's Nazi Germany did to those considered social deviants.
All of this is moving quickly down a slippery slope. Most of the murders reported on by the Santa Cruz Sentinel are by housed people. The City is not making it illegal to own or rent a home. This ill-considered political posturing is disturbing, tarring an entire population of the community's most vulnerable people, pandering to the hate mongers.
I agree with John C -- some of the list is just plain illegal, and other parts would cause limits to the hard-won federal dollars which are (IMO) the backbone of existing homeless services in our County. The city council of City of Santa Cruz has proposed stuff like "registering" before, only to be shot down in court or Federal fiat because they approached their "change" without prep and research (they don't know what they're talking about) and -- no surprise, happens so oft -- there's apparently no institutional memory from election to election among city council members.
I object to the idea that no new services in the City will be allowed. Extremely stupid to attempt to create limits instead of incentives and infrastructure supports for services which are too few to meet the existing need during such an "inflated" recession.
But they WILL do this anyway ~~ unless there is an equal and opposite response present. The gratuitous deaths are on all of our hands, and I mean the deaths of homeless people for obscene reasons as well as this triggering murder.
I object to the idea that no new services in the City will be allowed. Extremely stupid to attempt to create limits instead of incentives and infrastructure supports for services which are too few to meet the existing need during such an "inflated" recession.
But they WILL do this anyway ~~ unless there is an equal and opposite response present. The gratuitous deaths are on all of our hands, and I mean the deaths of homeless people for obscene reasons as well as this triggering murder.
For more information:
http://peacecamp2010insider.blogspot.com/
Is anybody really all that shocked that the City Council, as well as those lovable hate-mongers from TBSC, are exploiting this tragedy for their own ends? This is the anti-homeless moment they have been waiting for, and they see a blank check of political capital that allows them to pass through borderline-illegal legislation that (most) rational people in SC would generally not give them so easily. On the upside, about half of this list of changes looks like it will very likely find its way to the 9th District Appellate court if the city attempts to implement and enforce them, where the City Council will once again have its ass handed to them.
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