MEDFORD, Ore. — The city of Medford says it’s perfectly legal for it to remove the homeless from Hawthorne Park.
Deputy City Attorney Eric Mitton says this was a situation where the entire park was closed to the public, which the city has the ability to do.
Their reason, was to clean the park and address hygiene concerns that have been raised.
However, there is recent case law about prohibited camping, both in Grants Pass and in Idaho.
The Blake v. Grants Pass case says citing a person for putting down bedding materials is not allowed if there’s no adequate shelter facilities available in that community.
But Mitton says the case did reserve the right for municipalities to address tents, urination, defecation, drug use, and more.
“The concentration of individuals here in this particular location created some hygiene issues and the city always has the ability to close a limited specific area for hygiene purposes and that was the key issue here in Hawthorne Park,” said Mitton.
Mitton says the second case in Idaho rules police can’t criminalize illegal camping unless there are shelter beds available.
He says police in Hawthorne Park did not give out prohibited camping citations, but issues of outstanding warrants and trespass after the area was closed to the public.
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