Police make 55 vagrancy-related arrests

Following a call to action from city commissioners to address problems associated with a growing homeless population downtown, Sarasota police arrested 55 homeless people during a four-week period. In addition, a two-day police operation led to another 24 arrests or citations.

The installation of a second camera downtown to monitor problems that might arise from the transient population is expected to lead to additional arrests.

A recent incident involved a 47-year-old homeless man. According to police reports, an officer drove past the homeless man Aug. 26 as he tossed a half-lit cigarette near Selby Five Points Park. While the officer was issuing the man a warning, he noted the man was acting nervous. The officer asked the man if he possessed anything illegal. The suspect then removed a bottle of whiskey and cigarette pack containing a small bag of marijuana from his bag. Ultimately, the officer issued the man two summons to appear in court.
This incident mimics other cases, in which an increased police focus on the growing vagrant population has led to arrests and citations. It remains difficult to enforce the city’s current trespass ordinance because of the way it is written, and police have to apply other laws, such as panhandling, cautiously. Arresting someone for just asking for money would not hold in court, said Police Capt. Wade B. McVay.

“It’s very difficult (to enforce) if someone asks, ‘Can I have five cents?’ and then walks away,” said McVay. “It has to be aggressive panhandling.”

As a result, police have relied on an increased law-enforcement presence specifically on the lookout for other violations ranging from someone having an open container to smoking a cigarette in Selby Five Points Park. In 2011, the city of Sarasota approved a ban on smoking in all city parks.

“We are out there,” McVay said. Of the 55 most recent arrests, only 14 were for illegal lodging or trespassing.

Advocates for the homeless have labeled the recent arrests a war on the homeless and have called for other programs to assist the growing homeless population.

Chris Young, an advocate for the homeless, was one of those who spoke against the arrests, saying that harassing homeless doesn’t address the real issues behind the rise in homeless downtown. Young said he was still upset about the city’s decision to remove park benches from Selby Five Points Park.

The spike in arrests was spurred by a push from Mayor Suzanne Atwell, who at a meeting last month said she felt unsafe walking downtown. Commissioners Paul Caragiulo, Shannon Snyder and Terry Turner have all said vagrancy should be a top priority.

Police have attributed the increase in the homeless population to a suspension in the city’s trespass program. The town’s former code was not in compliance with a recent federal appeals court ruling in a case that challenged the constitutionality of the city of St. Petersburg’s trespass warning ordinance.

In May, City Attorney Robert Fournier instituted a suspension of the verbal trespass warnings while the ordinance was amended to include a written warning that gives violators seven days to appeal their warnings at the police station.

Commissioners during Tuesday’s meeting said the arrests were a positive step and told police officials they want to hear updates every two weeks to see how it was helping the effort to curb vagrancy problems.
“This is a call to action,” Atwell said. “We want people to come to downtown. We are all in this together.
Look what has happened in the last four weeks. It has gotten better in only four weeks.”

Commissioners directed Fournier to work with the police department to continue to work on the city’s trespass ordinance and to consider any other “remedies.”

Resident Paul Tuttle said the city is living up to its reputation as the meanest city to the homeless.

“They’ve declared war on the homeless, and they call it vagrancy,” said Tuttle.

Contact Roger Drouin at [email protected].