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What Would Martin Luther King Jr. Do?
Chief Andy Mills is pushing a series of cruel civil rights violations against those without housing and is sponsoring the MLK March in Santa Cruz.
WHAT WOULD MARTIN LUTHER KING JR DO?
Chief Andy Mills is pushing a series of cruel civil rights violations against those without housing.
The Sentinel notes “Prominent among the ideas that Santa Cruz Police Chief Andy Mills plans to shop around the community, including the more than 50 people gathered Wednesday night at a Santa Cruz Neighbors meeting, is a revamped city no-camping ordinance. The new law, as discussed this week, may focus on restricting signs of daytime encampments in public locations from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.” It would be hard to imagine Martin Luther King Jr silently agreeing to force those living on the street to be criminally charged for erecting a tent before 10 PM or remaining in their tent after 7 forced to pack all their belongings before being subject to arrest.
Doctor King would probably object to his proposal to “expanding Pacific Avenue’s designation as a city “park,” subject to nightly curfews and escalating stay-away orders” subjecting to those without housing to yet more laws. I doubt that the people leaving the music venues will be trespassed from Pacific but if you are seeking shelter in the doorway at Salvation Army you will be ordered to stay off Pacific Avenue and possibly face months in jail if caught on the avenue a second time.
Chief Mills is also asking the City Council to let police officers be given discretion to offer “diversion” punishments and/or upgrade infractions to arrestable misdemeanors in the field for repeat offenders.
The Sentinel ends their report on the Santa Cruz Neighbors meeting “Mills also elaborated on his plan to empower officers with more enforcement flexibility and discretion. He said of the approximately 11,000 tickets his officers hand out yearly, about 8,700 — some 79% — go to “people without addresses.” Of those who receive tickets and are homeless, Mills said, 92% do not appear in court on the citations.
“Because so many people fail to appear on their tickets, it’s not an effective strategy. What I’d much rather do is to divert them to keep them out of the justice system altogether,” Mills said. “A way of doing that is to give the officers discretion to hold the ticket and say, Saturday, if you come and help us clean up part of the city, let’s do something positive for the city, we will not send it over to the City Attorney’s Office for issuing.” This sounds like forcing people to choose between working for free for the police without due process or face arrest. What would Doctor King have to say about this?
Chief Andy Mills is on a cynical public relations campaign. On Friday night he told a heartwarming story of his officers recovering a one-year -old kidnap victim to a gathering organizing to stop the Recall Campaign that he is indirectly supporting. A couple days before he asked Rabbi Phil Posner if he could post his beautiful story of spending 39 days in a Mississippi Jail as a Freedom Rider and he is cosponsoring with the NAACP the city’s Martin Luther King Jr march.
While Chief Andy Mills is on tour pushing these cruel civil rights violation he will be leading a march to honor the civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr on Monday.
Feel free to share.
Keith McHenry - co-founder of the Food Not Bombs Movement and officer of the Santa Cruz Homeless Union.
On-deck Santa Cruz laws target nuisance behaviors
Proposals would affect city’s homeless population heavily
https://www.santacruzsentinel.com/2020/01/16/on-deck-santa-cruz-laws-target-nuisance-behaviors/
Chief Andy Mills is pushing a series of cruel civil rights violations against those without housing.
The Sentinel notes “Prominent among the ideas that Santa Cruz Police Chief Andy Mills plans to shop around the community, including the more than 50 people gathered Wednesday night at a Santa Cruz Neighbors meeting, is a revamped city no-camping ordinance. The new law, as discussed this week, may focus on restricting signs of daytime encampments in public locations from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.” It would be hard to imagine Martin Luther King Jr silently agreeing to force those living on the street to be criminally charged for erecting a tent before 10 PM or remaining in their tent after 7 forced to pack all their belongings before being subject to arrest.
Doctor King would probably object to his proposal to “expanding Pacific Avenue’s designation as a city “park,” subject to nightly curfews and escalating stay-away orders” subjecting to those without housing to yet more laws. I doubt that the people leaving the music venues will be trespassed from Pacific but if you are seeking shelter in the doorway at Salvation Army you will be ordered to stay off Pacific Avenue and possibly face months in jail if caught on the avenue a second time.
Chief Mills is also asking the City Council to let police officers be given discretion to offer “diversion” punishments and/or upgrade infractions to arrestable misdemeanors in the field for repeat offenders.
The Sentinel ends their report on the Santa Cruz Neighbors meeting “Mills also elaborated on his plan to empower officers with more enforcement flexibility and discretion. He said of the approximately 11,000 tickets his officers hand out yearly, about 8,700 — some 79% — go to “people without addresses.” Of those who receive tickets and are homeless, Mills said, 92% do not appear in court on the citations.
“Because so many people fail to appear on their tickets, it’s not an effective strategy. What I’d much rather do is to divert them to keep them out of the justice system altogether,” Mills said. “A way of doing that is to give the officers discretion to hold the ticket and say, Saturday, if you come and help us clean up part of the city, let’s do something positive for the city, we will not send it over to the City Attorney’s Office for issuing.” This sounds like forcing people to choose between working for free for the police without due process or face arrest. What would Doctor King have to say about this?
Chief Andy Mills is on a cynical public relations campaign. On Friday night he told a heartwarming story of his officers recovering a one-year -old kidnap victim to a gathering organizing to stop the Recall Campaign that he is indirectly supporting. A couple days before he asked Rabbi Phil Posner if he could post his beautiful story of spending 39 days in a Mississippi Jail as a Freedom Rider and he is cosponsoring with the NAACP the city’s Martin Luther King Jr march.
While Chief Andy Mills is on tour pushing these cruel civil rights violation he will be leading a march to honor the civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr on Monday.
Feel free to share.
Keith McHenry - co-founder of the Food Not Bombs Movement and officer of the Santa Cruz Homeless Union.
On-deck Santa Cruz laws target nuisance behaviors
Proposals would affect city’s homeless population heavily
https://www.santacruzsentinel.com/2020/01/16/on-deck-santa-cruz-laws-target-nuisance-behaviors/
For more information:
https://www.santacruzsentinel.com/2020/01/...
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Video journalist and Salinas Homeless Union activist Wes White videoed the meeting on 1-15 at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1vi1QGWgK0&t=6s .
My audio commentary on the meeting in a discussion with White is at http://huffsantacruz.org/lost/1%20FRSC%201-19-20.MP3 (2 hours and 15 minutes into the audio).
My audio commentary on the meeting in a discussion with White is at http://huffsantacruz.org/lost/1%20FRSC%201-19-20.MP3 (2 hours and 15 minutes into the audio).
For more information:
http://www.huffsantacruz.org
The Sentinel story (if you can find it) is currently available on line at https://www.santacruzsentinel.com/2020/01/16/on-deck-santa-cruz-laws-target-nuisance-behaviors/ .
However as access is sometimes difficult without payment or disappears with time, here's the text of it:
On-deck Santa Cruz laws target nuisance behaviors
Proposals would affect city’s homeless population heavily
By Jessica A. York | jyork [at] santacruzsentinel.com | Santa Cruz Sentinel
PUBLISHED: January 16, 2020 at 5:09 pm | UPDATED: January 17, 2020 at 5:51 pm
SANTA CRUZ — A host of new city laws aimed at curbing nuisance conduct are in the works, ordinances that would affect heavily those living on the city’s streets.
Prominent among the ideas that Santa Cruz Police Chief Andy Mills plans to shop around the community, including the more than 50 people gathered Wednesday night at a Santa Cruz Neighbors meeting, is a revamped city no-camping ordinance.
The new law, as discussed this week, may focus on restricting signs of daytime encampments in public locations from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. The city’s Community Advisory Committee on Homelessness also has been seeking public engagement on a revised ordinance recommendation, due for city consideration Feb. 25.
“Let me emphasize it one more time: This is not going to solve any homeless problems,” Mills told an audience of housed residents and homelessness-issues advocates alike. “The purpose is to control behaviors that affect our businesses, that affect our community, that affect our citizens – both housed and unhoused.”
Mills said he was seeking input on the rough-draft ordinance ideas before bringing formal proposals to the Santa Cruz City Council for consideration. He added that he planned to announce some four or five additional community input meeting dates for March.
One audience member, describing himself as “tired” of illegal activities, asked Mills what citizens can be empowered to do in reaction to scofflaws, to which Mills stressed that he did not support vigilantism and could offer training in peaceful de-escalation. Another speaker, Monterey County/Salinas Homeless Union leader Wes White, accused Mills and city officials of coming up with ideas to “black out the checkerboard” of locations for homeless people to be, which Mills countered by saying people living in two recreational vehicles are permitted to park nightly in the department’s lot.
Upcoming proposals
Additional forthcoming ordinance ideas, designed to punish “behaviors that we as a community decide is against the norm,” according to Mills, included:
• No-syringe zones, except for medical purposes, in city parks and beaches.
• Expanding Pacific Avenue’s designation as a city “park,” subject to nightly curfews and escalating stay-away orders.
• Banning public bicycle dismantling, when more than one bicyle at a time.
• Setting West Cliff Drive parking fees and/or time limits.
• Holding businesses responsible for their missing shopping carts.
• Police officers given discretion to offer “diversion” punishments and/or upgrade infractions to arrestable misdemeanors in the field for repeat offenders.
Proposal details
Using “park” rules to enforce behavioral norms downtown, said Mills and City Attorney Tony Condotti, may prove to be difficult. The downtown provides some essential services such as the post office, food shopping and medical and Social Security offices, and contains walking and driving thoroughfares that must be accessible overnight.
The park designation also impact downtown development projects and merchants’ bottom lines, the two officials said. Concerned community members pointed out that many homeless people rely on sleeping in downtown business doorways overnight, as well.
Mills also elaborated on his plan to empower officers with more enforcement flexibility and discretion. He said of the approximately 11,000 tickets his officers hand out yearly, about 8,700 — some 79% — go to “people without addresses.” Of those who receive tickets and are homeless, Mills said, 92% do not appear in court on the citations.
“Because so many people fail to appear on their tickets, it’s not an effective strategy. What I’d much rather do is to divert them to keep them out of the justice system altogether,” Mills said. “A way of doing that is to give the officers discretion to hold the ticket and say, Saturday, if you come and help us clean up part of the city, let’s do something positive for the city, we will not send it over to the City Attorney’s Office for issuing.”
However as access is sometimes difficult without payment or disappears with time, here's the text of it:
On-deck Santa Cruz laws target nuisance behaviors
Proposals would affect city’s homeless population heavily
By Jessica A. York | jyork [at] santacruzsentinel.com | Santa Cruz Sentinel
PUBLISHED: January 16, 2020 at 5:09 pm | UPDATED: January 17, 2020 at 5:51 pm
SANTA CRUZ — A host of new city laws aimed at curbing nuisance conduct are in the works, ordinances that would affect heavily those living on the city’s streets.
Prominent among the ideas that Santa Cruz Police Chief Andy Mills plans to shop around the community, including the more than 50 people gathered Wednesday night at a Santa Cruz Neighbors meeting, is a revamped city no-camping ordinance.
The new law, as discussed this week, may focus on restricting signs of daytime encampments in public locations from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. The city’s Community Advisory Committee on Homelessness also has been seeking public engagement on a revised ordinance recommendation, due for city consideration Feb. 25.
“Let me emphasize it one more time: This is not going to solve any homeless problems,” Mills told an audience of housed residents and homelessness-issues advocates alike. “The purpose is to control behaviors that affect our businesses, that affect our community, that affect our citizens – both housed and unhoused.”
Mills said he was seeking input on the rough-draft ordinance ideas before bringing formal proposals to the Santa Cruz City Council for consideration. He added that he planned to announce some four or five additional community input meeting dates for March.
One audience member, describing himself as “tired” of illegal activities, asked Mills what citizens can be empowered to do in reaction to scofflaws, to which Mills stressed that he did not support vigilantism and could offer training in peaceful de-escalation. Another speaker, Monterey County/Salinas Homeless Union leader Wes White, accused Mills and city officials of coming up with ideas to “black out the checkerboard” of locations for homeless people to be, which Mills countered by saying people living in two recreational vehicles are permitted to park nightly in the department’s lot.
Upcoming proposals
Additional forthcoming ordinance ideas, designed to punish “behaviors that we as a community decide is against the norm,” according to Mills, included:
• No-syringe zones, except for medical purposes, in city parks and beaches.
• Expanding Pacific Avenue’s designation as a city “park,” subject to nightly curfews and escalating stay-away orders.
• Banning public bicycle dismantling, when more than one bicyle at a time.
• Setting West Cliff Drive parking fees and/or time limits.
• Holding businesses responsible for their missing shopping carts.
• Police officers given discretion to offer “diversion” punishments and/or upgrade infractions to arrestable misdemeanors in the field for repeat offenders.
Proposal details
Using “park” rules to enforce behavioral norms downtown, said Mills and City Attorney Tony Condotti, may prove to be difficult. The downtown provides some essential services such as the post office, food shopping and medical and Social Security offices, and contains walking and driving thoroughfares that must be accessible overnight.
The park designation also impact downtown development projects and merchants’ bottom lines, the two officials said. Concerned community members pointed out that many homeless people rely on sleeping in downtown business doorways overnight, as well.
Mills also elaborated on his plan to empower officers with more enforcement flexibility and discretion. He said of the approximately 11,000 tickets his officers hand out yearly, about 8,700 — some 79% — go to “people without addresses.” Of those who receive tickets and are homeless, Mills said, 92% do not appear in court on the citations.
“Because so many people fail to appear on their tickets, it’s not an effective strategy. What I’d much rather do is to divert them to keep them out of the justice system altogether,” Mills said. “A way of doing that is to give the officers discretion to hold the ticket and say, Saturday, if you come and help us clean up part of the city, let’s do something positive for the city, we will not send it over to the City Attorney’s Office for issuing.”
For more information:
http://www.huffsantacruz.org
In past years, I've drawn attention to police abuses and the hypocrisy of celebrating Martin Luther King Day unless you also point to specific issues of local abuse.
Impressions of the 2019 parade ("Police-Led Martin Luther King Day March, Lots of Smiles, Little Substance" at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2019/01/22/18820615.php).
Flyer detailing concerns ("Time to Stop Harassing Struggling Residents Whose Only Home is their Vehicle" at https://www.indybay.org/uploads/2019/01/22/mlk_main_flyer.pdf
My impressions of the 2018 parade are at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2018/01/16/18805901.php .(Flyer Distributed in the MLK Police-Led "Peace and Justice" March in Santa Cruz)
The flyer I distributed there--whose concerns were dismissed by Mills at that time--can be seen at https://www.indybay.org/uploads/2018/01/16/mlk_parade_scpd_abuses_flyer.pdf . ("Are Puff Parades Progress? Give Us Long-Term Answers. Martin Luther King Wanted Action Not Reassurance")
Further back in 2015, some of us raised relevant local issues on MLK Day ("Striking Back at the Stay-Away" at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2015/01/20/18767292.php).
Santa Cruz is the only city I know of that allows police to issue their own "stay-away" orders even before someone has been charged in court with a crime, by simply issuing an infraction citation for an alleged minor offense (like having a tent on a sidewalk against the rain or standing under the eaves of a building or in a parking structure).
Chief Mills is now barnstorming--making speeches at conservative neighborhood groups to urge passage of ordinances that artificially declare Pacific Ave "a park" so that his militarized rangers can issue stay-away orders whenever they give out infraction tickets without going to a court or gaining a conviction.
The local ACLU has yet to attempt to enjoin this dangeroulsy unconstitutional police practice that targets homeless people, poor people, people of color, and activists.
Impressions of the 2019 parade ("Police-Led Martin Luther King Day March, Lots of Smiles, Little Substance" at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2019/01/22/18820615.php).
Flyer detailing concerns ("Time to Stop Harassing Struggling Residents Whose Only Home is their Vehicle" at https://www.indybay.org/uploads/2019/01/22/mlk_main_flyer.pdf
My impressions of the 2018 parade are at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2018/01/16/18805901.php .(Flyer Distributed in the MLK Police-Led "Peace and Justice" March in Santa Cruz)
The flyer I distributed there--whose concerns were dismissed by Mills at that time--can be seen at https://www.indybay.org/uploads/2018/01/16/mlk_parade_scpd_abuses_flyer.pdf . ("Are Puff Parades Progress? Give Us Long-Term Answers. Martin Luther King Wanted Action Not Reassurance")
Further back in 2015, some of us raised relevant local issues on MLK Day ("Striking Back at the Stay-Away" at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2015/01/20/18767292.php).
Santa Cruz is the only city I know of that allows police to issue their own "stay-away" orders even before someone has been charged in court with a crime, by simply issuing an infraction citation for an alleged minor offense (like having a tent on a sidewalk against the rain or standing under the eaves of a building or in a parking structure).
Chief Mills is now barnstorming--making speeches at conservative neighborhood groups to urge passage of ordinances that artificially declare Pacific Ave "a park" so that his militarized rangers can issue stay-away orders whenever they give out infraction tickets without going to a court or gaining a conviction.
The local ACLU has yet to attempt to enjoin this dangeroulsy unconstitutional police practice that targets homeless people, poor people, people of color, and activists.
For more information:
http://www.huffsantacruz.org
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