The high court’s ruling is already having a ripple effect on cities across the country, which have been emboldened to take harsher measures to clear out homeless camps that have grown in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Many US cities have been wrestling with how to combat the growing crisis. The issue has been at the heart of recent election cycles on the West Coast, where officials have poured record amounts of money into creating shelters and building affordable housing.
Leaders face mounting pressure as long-term solutions - from housing and shelters to voluntary treatment services and eviction help - take time.
“It’s not easy and it will take a time to put into place solutions that work, so there’s a little bit of political theatre going on here," Scout Katovich, an attorney who focuses on these issues for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), told the BBC.
"Politicians want to be able to say they’re doing something,”
To be honest going to jail isn’t a great thing though. That’s just creating more trauma that’s going to block any recovery. I agree it needs to be there at some point but this feels like we’ve just gone back to the war on drugs that didn’t work.
It’s the stick to get them to accept the carrot of treatment.
That’s the problem. They’re used to the stick. They’ll just bear it until they can escape reality again. It doesn’t help anyone, it just makes anti drug crusaders feel better.