Police sweeps of homeless people from more visible places in Manhattan have tended to disperse some of those living on the street to other boroughs, advocates for the homeless say. And police crackdowns on ''quality of life offenses'' such as drinking in public, trespassing, obstructing the sidewalk and panhandling -- like the one recently announced by Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani -- also tend to send homeless people out of sight, to the jail on Rikers Island among other places.
An analysis of the city's computerized shelter records in recent years shows that about 25,000 people use the city's single-adult shelters in a given year; about half of these leave after a week and do not come back. Another third return periodically for stays of about 80 days, while a minority are the long-termers who dominate the public image of the homeless.
A study issued this week by the Bronx borough president, Fernando Ferrer, who is running for mayor next year, estimates that the so-called street-bound homeless number more than 10,000 people citywide. The study recommended a more coordinated approach among city agencies that deal with the homeless, including the police.
In another pending lawsuit with a potential impact on the homeless shelter system, a state judge ruled last summer that continuing mental health care must be arranged for mentally ill inmates before they are released from Rikers Island and other jails. That order has been stayed pending a city appeal, but a settlement is under negotiation. Lawyers for the plaintiffs said it could include referring such inmates to specialized shelters, instead of dropping them in Queens Plaza at night, as is done now.
Advocates had mixed feelings on the city's addition of temporary beds.
''It's certainly a welcome change to have the focus be getting a roof over people's heads, but it's unfortunate that the city continues to view single-adult homelessness as something that can be dealt with mainly with emergency shelter beds instead of permanent housing and additional mental health services,'' said Steven Banks, the Legal Aid Society lawyer who represents the Coalition for the Homeless. ''The bottom line is, a shelter is not a home.''
Courtesy of the NY Times
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Monday, September 25, 2000
City Lines Up More Shelter For Homeless
Thursday, March 9, 2000
Sex Offender: Caesar Kilpatrick
Name: Kilpatrick, Ceasar
Description
Race: Black
Ethnicity: Unknown
Height: 5'11"
Weight 215
Hair: Black
Eyes: Black
Special Characteristics: none
DOB: 03/30/1957
Residence: Peter G. Young Residence Shelter
Conviction
Crime: Sexual Abuse, 2nd Degree
Date: 03/09/2000
Victim: Female, 11 years
Sentence: Probation-3 years
Offense Description: Actual Sexual Contact
Relationship to victim: Unknown
Weapon used: Unknown
Force used: Unknown
Thursday, January 20, 2000
Police Arrest 125 in Nighttime Raids on Homeless Shelters
Officials of the the Department of Homeless Services said the arrests were intended to make the shelters safer. ''Removing individuals with outstanding warrants from the shelters is one strategy D.H.S. utilizes to ensure all homeless individuals have a safe environment where they can temporarily reside and receive services,'' the department's statement said...
Some advocates for homeless people criticized the sweep, saying it could discourage other homeless people from seeking shelter during the coldest nights of the year.
Courtesy of the NY Times
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