Johnson v. Grants Pass at Oral Argument
Recently the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Johnson v. Grants Pass, the case that has dominated this space and hung over the heads of unhoused persons and their advocates for months. The question: can government criminalize sleeping outside when homeless folks have nowhere else to go? The Ninth Circuit, since Martin v. Boise in…
Johnson v. Grants Pass goes to SCOTUS
This post is rather late, but it’s important that advocates know that the Supreme Court has *granted certiorari* in Johnson v. Grants Pass, the case relating to the 9th Circuit’s jurisprudence preventing the criminalization of homelessness. As mentioned in this space previously, this appellate effort is being spearheaded by Governor Newsom, a host of Democratic…
SCOTUS Poised to Decide Fate of 9th Circuit Homelessness Jurisprudence
This week, City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson was circulated to the Justices of the Supreme Court for conference. As covered previously on this blog, Johnson is the latest in a series of decisions from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to interpret the 8th Amendment’s prohibition against “cruel and unusual punishment” to apply…
Governor Newsom and San Francisco Want to Rob Homeless Persons of their Rights
In the year 2023, you wouldn’t think the Governor of California and the Mayor of San Francisco would be rooting for the conservative majority on the Supreme Court to deprive people of their rights. And yet, in public statements and litigation before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, these leaders of one of the nation’s…
Ninth Circuit Upholds Civil Rights for Homeless Persons – but Trouble is Brewing
A few weeks ago, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals denied a motion by the City of Grants Pass, Oregon, for a rehearing en banc of a 3-judge panel’s prior decision in September 2022 in Johnson v. City of Grants Pass (50 F.4th 787, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 27187, 113 Fed. R. Serv. 3d (Callaghan)…
State of CARE Court April 2023
With a Fall 2023 deadline looming, the first 8 California Counties to implement CARE Court have been coordinating meetings between legal aid organizations, public defender offices, courts, and political and administrative staff to determine the structure of this new program. In so doing, a particular kind of chicken-and-egg problem has emerged which has hampered counties…
Where Do We Go from Here? An Advocate’s Guide to CARE Courts
Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment Act, or CARE Courts are now California law. Governor Newsom recently signed SB 1338, authorizing counties to begin creating their CARE Court programs. This was not an outcome our community desired – rather than seeing the legal and bodily rights of our clients and community members subjected to a court…
Gavin Newsom’s CARE Courts- Hope with Caution
On March 3, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a new plan to fight homelessness – the creation of “CARE courts”, a state-wide program to compel persons with severe mental illness or addiction into treatment through court-mandated programs and case management. As the LA Times reported, while the program is primarily intentioned to help the…
Legislature Extends COVID-19 Protections: AB 832 in Plain English for Tenants and Advocates
On June 28, 2021, Governor Newsom signed AB 832 into law, extending and enhancing protections for tenants in financial distress due to COVID-19. Overall, this bill is a big win for tenants and tenant advocates. Below is a summary of the changes and how they’ll affect you and/or your clients: The bill expands and extends…
How does the Eviction Moratorium Work? Tips for Tenants
Last year, AB 3088 was passed by the CA legislature and signed by the governor. Among its many provisions is a ban on evictions for nonpayment of rent due to COVID-19-related financial difficulty. This post will explain how that provision of the law works, and what tenants need to prepare in order to successfully contest…
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CCWRO Homelessness News and Notes 