Victoria police to add wake-up calls for homeless to morning rounds
Ruling giving homeless right to sleep in city parks more work for officers: police
Last Updated: Monday, October 20, 2008 | 10:39 PM PT
The Canadian Press
A court ruling that struck down a Victoria bylaw will mean extra work for police, who now have to add early morning wake-up calls for homeless people camping in city parks to their morning rounds, a police spokesman says.
Victoria Police Sgt. Grant Hamilton said Monday the B.C. Supreme Court ruling last week gave the homeless the right to camp in city parks, but they must still be packed up and ready to move out by 7 a.m.
"We've been dealing with this for some years now," Hamilton said. "It's no different than before last week. It hasn't been a significant issue for us, but obviously, when we had the situation like we had last week, then we have to take action."
Last Friday, police shut down a makeshift tent city that was erected in Beacon Hill Park in downtown Victoria near the B.C. legislature in the wake of the court ruling. Five people were arrested and three were fined. Police said they moved in to prevent the site from becoming a more permanent fixture in the park.
Hamilton said police are currently addressing the homeless issue on a case-by-case basis and have yet to decide whether it will require extra officers.
Police have reached an understanding with homeless people in the city, he said.
"We have allowed people to sleep, obviously, in the doorways as long as they are not erecting a shelter in the doorways downtown. We approach them in the morning and ask them to move on," Hamilton said.
"Ninety-five per cent of them are very co-operative."
B.C. Supreme Court judge Carol Ross struck down the Victoria bylaw, saying there's too little room in city shelters.
Ross found that hundreds of homeless people have no choice but to sleep outside and that the bylaw forbidding them to use tents or other coverings violates their charter rights.
There are an estimated 1,500 homeless people in Victoria.
The City of Victoria said it will appeal the ruling but until the appeal is heard, which could take up to a year, homeless people will be permitted to camp overnight in public parks from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.
The people will be expected to pack up and leave the next morning, said acting Mayor Dean Fortin, adding the public and city council will not tolerate tent cities in public parks.
