State of the Law in Washington State

[DLTooley]

A brief review of the law in Washington State and available resources.  There is a current case before the State Appeals Court.  

https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/r...97923c5#iB1117774-17BD-44A1-8A5A-7AF9DEE4AF28

 

[WanderingRose]

Impounding vehicles a homeless person is living in and then holding them for ransom is beyond the pale, in my opinion.

But if they are broken down and/or in a place not allowed, that could be considered justified.

This is the stuff case law is made of, and may improve services available in the long run as the courts define what cities can and cannot do, and they adjust to be in compliance.

 

[maki2]

I did a search on the Washington State appeals court records for all the districts and the results return that there is not record for that case number in any district of that court. It is also not on the record of any verdicts given within the last 14 days.

 

[WanderingRose]

It may be in process somewhere.

It’s a case out of Seattle.

I couldn’t find a docket number, but did find this article from June of last year that says a ruling in favor of Steven Long is pending in the court of appeals.

http://mrsc.org/Home/Stay-Informed/...melessness-and-the-Limits-of-Enforcement.aspx

I don’t find anything that there has been oral argument yet, which would precede a ruling.

 

[maki2]

Here is an update to some information related to this subject from an article in the Seattle times updated on December 17, 2019, I am copying the text of that article here for the convenience of those who have limited bandwidth.

Headline of the article: "The Supreme Court won’t hear a case on a ‘constitutional right to camp.’ Here’s what that means for homelessness in Washington"
By Scott Greenstone
and Sydney Brownstone

The U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear a landmark case on homelessness and camping bans, the court announced Monday, leaving in place a lower court’s decision that cities can’t enforce laws against homeless people sleeping in public places if they have nowhere else to go.

The decision is a blow to some Washington law enforcement and elected officials who hoped the Supreme Court would reverse the previous ruling, but homeless advocates lauded the outcome.

“It’s a good day,” said Eric Tars, legal director for the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, which joined other legal advocates on the case. “We can feel good that the court has let this ruling stand, in saying that we as Americans believe that homeless people who have no place to go can’t be criminally punished.”

The Seattle Times newspaper has a special section called "Project Homeless" where they provide updates on all information in the area regarding news related to Homeless issues in the area and also some elsewhere in the nation such as this recent Supreme Court refusal to hear a case.

Towing of derelict vehicles that are non functional motor vehicles that get left in parking spaces beyond the time of the parking ordinance laws adds a complexity to such issues.

 

[maki2]

It may be in process somewhere.

It’s a case out of Seattle.

I couldn’t find a docket number, but did find this article from June of last year that says a ruling in favor of Steven Long is pending in the court of appeals.

http://mrsc.org/Home/Stay-Informed/...melessness-and-the-Limits-of-Enforcement.aspx

I don’t find anything that there has been oral argument yet, which would precede a ruling.

I checked all of the courts in Washington state, not just district 1 which is in Seattle. There is no record found using the case number that was in that article referenced above.

 

[maki2]

Here is an article from November regarding the Steven Long case form the local Newspaper "Real Change". Real Change is a very special newspaper in the Seattle are and it has been around for quite a few years. The paper is focused on the issues of homeless and low income although there are sometimes other related articles in it. .
https://www.realchangenews.org/2019...g-case-may-affect-those-living-their-vehicles

Real Change is sold by individuals on the streets in various locations around the city. The vendors themselves are low income and sometimes also homeless but do want to work rather than just looking for handouts. My local vendor sells on the property of the USPS service center I go to for shipping out the items I sell online. So I see him fairly often and buy the paper now and again. When I have a few extra dollars in my wallet because I have had a good week of sales I will sometimes give him extra beyond the $2.00 for the cost of the paper. Sometimes we have discussions about the situation in the neighborhood regarding homeless issues and/or local crime. The paper has been a source of at least some income for many who are otherwise unable to find a job. Some selling locations are much better than others so those are coveted spots. The spots get assigned to individuals as permission to be there has to be granted by the business at that location. My local seller lives in walking distance of his selling location in a small rented room in someone's basement.

Interestingly the local Trader Joe's in the neighborhood also gives permission for various types of activities for raising awareness of local issues, sometimes regarding petitions but also some fund raising efforts to help low income to happen on the sidewalk in front of the entry to their store. That Trader Joe store is right in the middle of a section of town where there are a considerable number of people living in their RVs and in tents on the streets. It is an industrial zoned area which means living in RVs on the street is permitted as long as the parking ordinances are complied with.

 

[WanderingRose]

If you’re referring to this number “#6901EN”, I’m pretty certain that is not a case number, or docket number, to be more accurate.

I’m not sure what it is.

Does seem from all reports that the ruling in Steven Long’s case (and in his favor) is pending on appeal, and will be interesting to see how they rule and the impact that has.

 

[jacqueg]

Here's another article about the Steven Long case with a few more details - https://patch.com/washington/seattle/seattle-loses-case-after-impounding-homeless-mans-car

Seattle apparently has an ordinance that requires people in residential areas who park on the street to move their vehicles every 72 hours. You're fine as long as you do that. I've never seen it posted, but the reason the previous owner of my van sold it to me was that he was tired of having to move it, and thought it would be about a year before he'd be able to take it out camping again.

It sounds like Long's vehicle was unable to be driven - or he was ignorant that he had to move his vehicle.