Should cities be allowed to outlaw sleeping in public, even when there are no beds available in local shelters? This is what the U.S. Supreme Court will decide in its review of the case Grants Pass v. Johnson.
Lower courts have ruled that arresting someone for sleeping outside when there are no free shelter beds in the area is a violation of the Eighth Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment. In other words, it’s cruel to punish people who are sleeping in public if they have nowhere else to go, because sleeping is a normal and necessary human behavior. Now the Supreme Court justices will determine whether this ruling can stand.
