Court rulings, state laws limit police in dealing with homeless camps
By Terry Murry on Thursday, November 9th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – Homeless camps and their threat to public safety remain a problem in Pendleton. Police Chief Chuck Byram said his officers are limited by court rulings that the homeless have a right to rest between certain hours in certain places. He said that law enforcement can only make sure that ordinance is being obeyed.
“When they violate it, that is when we can step in and issue the violation, which is like a traffic ticket,” he said. “It’s hard. We’re chasing them around all the time. We encourage people to call us when they see camps.”
The city contracts with a company to remove those camps, however Byram points out that notices must be posted at the camp 72 hours before it is due to be cleared. Acting without enforcing the court rulings and the state and local statutes can result in costly lawsuits.
“It’s frustrating,” Byram said. “It’s frustrating for everybody involved, but until legislation changes, until new case law is out there, until arguments are made to change the laws, this is the way it’s going to be.”
He promises if people report the camps there will be action.
“I have a zero-tolerance policy,” he said. “They know what they can and cannot do. We went through a rigorous education campaign. Everybody should know. If they are violating it now, it’s zero tolerance.”
Byram said the homelessness issue is closely linked to substance abuse and mental health issues.
“More likely than not, the individuals that we are encountering are suffering from the confluence of homelessness, addiction, or mental health issues,” he said. “What we’re seeing in the criminal justice system is that those three are linked to most of the incidents we have in the city.”
