Crackdowns on homeless encampments are ramping up in California following the US supreme court’s ruling that cities can fine and jail unhoused people sleeping outside even when there is no shelter available.
In California, home to an estimated 123,000 unsheltered people living in tents, trailers, cars and makeshift shelters, the Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, last week issued an executive order calling for the removal of encampments across the state. His order directed state agencies to shutter tent sites on properties in their jurisdictions and urged local municipalities to adopt similar crackdowns.
