Carrot and Stick for Street People

-

independent.comhttp://www.independent.com/news/2012/jun/07/carrot-and-stick-street-people/

Carrot and Stick for Street People

By Nick Welsh (Contact)
Police Pick Up Too Many Transients for Justice System to Handle
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Santa Barbara Police Sgt. Ed Olson told a roomful of downtown business owners that his officers were ready, willing, and able to pick up street transients violating the law but said that that the prosecutors, the judges, and the jail simply can’t handle the volume his officers can generate. “No one matches our output,” Olson told the early morning crowd of Downtown Organization members meeting at the library’s Faulkner Gallery. “The problem is bigger than the infrastructure can handle,” Olson said, “not the police department.” Olson ​— ​who identified young “travelers” as the biggest nuisance ​— ​said his officers often wait until Fridays to arrest transients because that keeps them off the streets for the entire weekend. Because of the department’s increased activity, Olson said, the jail was releasing probation and parole violators. Most of those, he noted were “North County arrestees.”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"I Saw the Best Souls of my City" by Wayne Martin Mellinger

-
Image
  .[.                                                                  ’ I SAW THE BEST SOULS OF MY CITY Final Version for the 13th Longest Night Wayne Martin Mellinger, Ph.D. Steps of the Courthouse, 21 December 2025 Dedicated to Timothy John Largent, age 31, from Bakersfield, who just wanted to quiet the voices in his head and ended up dead. ══════════════════════════════════════════════════ SECTION I: WITNESS Seeing the Sacred in the Thrown-Away I saw the best souls of my city standing in line at Ralph ’ s at dawn with pockets full of loose change and faded food-stamp cards, arguing gently over whether to buy coffee or bread, whispering psalms under flickering fluorescent lights, anointing cracked hands with jojoba and baby oil, passing a blunt like a peace pipe on a bench at El Presidio...
Read more

Mission and Index of Articles for "Our Neighbors on the Streets" Blog by Wayne Martin Mellinger, Ph.D.

-
Image
  Our Neighbors on the Streets:  Mission & Index Mission Our Neighbors on the Streets is dedicated to amplifying the voices and experiences of unhoused people in Santa Barbara and beyond. The blog combines autoethnography, investigative reporting, and social justice analysis to expose the realities of homelessness, critique failed policies, and highlight practices of care, compassion, and resistance. This work grows out of decades of scholarship, activism, and direct outreach. It seeks not only to inform but to humanize, shifting public conversation away from stereotypes and toward solidarity. Each piece is meant to educate neighbors, challenge prejudice, and advance a vision of housing justice rooted in dignity and community. Index of Selected Posts When Home Turns Deadly and Women End Up on the Street (https://ourneighborsonthestreets.blogspot.com/2025/09/when-home-turns-deadly.html) Hidden Suffering Deserves Compassion, Not Sweeps (https://ourneighborsonthestreets.blo...
Read more

The Plight of the Triple Challenged by Wayne M. Mellinger, Ph.D.

-
Image
THE PLIGHT OF THE “TRIPLE CHALLENGED”:  UNDERSTANDING AND HELPING PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS AND SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS   By Wayne Martin Mellinger, Ph.D.  DRAFT JULY 2024  A version of the paper was presented to the NAMI Public Policy Group in July 2024,  moderated by Lynne Gibbs INTRODUCTION   Dual diagnosis, also known as co-occurring disorders, refers to the presence of both a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder in the same individual. These disorders can interact with each other, making diagnosis and treatment more complex. If that individual happens to be unhoused, they may be extremely vulnerable with poorly understood and complex needs. I call these individuals “the triple challenged” because of the three major obstacles they face.   For a variety of reasons those who are unhoused and experience both serious mental health challenges and substance use disorders seem to catch everyone...
Read more