CATHERINE “JASMINE” Perkins was panhandling as usual on the
corner of SW 6th and Morrison on Monday morning, June 23.
“Pregnant, broke, and waiting for housing. Need $20, please help,”
read her cardboard sign. Perkins—who dresses in the uniform of
gutter punks everywhere—makes $30 dollars on an average day. But
sometimes, especially now that she’s four months pregnant, she gets too
tired to stand for the whole day, so she sits down—and then gets
cited for breaking the city’s controversial sit-lie ordinance.
Since last November, Perkins has received 11 such
tickets—unless you ask the police bureau, which has vastly
underreported data on Perkins and the sit-lie law.
“According to [the police], I’ve only gotten a warning. But that’s
bullshit,” she says.
According to the cops’ official statistics given to the mayor’s
Street Access for Everyone (SAFE) Oversight Committee, which watchdogs
the way the sit-lie ordinance is enforced, Perkins only received one
verbal warning under the sit-lie law, back in February (a warning is a
prerequisite for a citation). But a search of the Oregon Judicial
Information Network confirms Perkins’ story: She got a citation each
month between November 2007 and January 2008, four in February, one in
March, two in April, and one in May.
It’s not clear why or how Perkins’ citations fell through the
data-reporting cracks, but the omission of her data is politically
significant: Her repeated ticketing suggests the ordinance is being
used overwhelmingly to target street kids—something proponents of
the law have denied since its inception. Before the Mercury found Perkins, the street kid with the most repeat citations under the
sit-lie law was Correy Gene Douglas Newman, who had received three,
according to the city’s data.
“I feel disappointed that it seems, somewhere in the process, data
is slipping through the cracks,” says Patrick Nolen, community outreach
organizer for homeless nonprofit Sisters of the Road—which left
the SAFE Oversight Committee last month to campaign for a repeal of the
law.
Perkins has a blunter perspective.
“They don’t want the public to know how many tickets they’re giving
to homeless people,” says Perkins, who has racked up $3,000 in fines
for the citations. “The cops are just doing this because their bosses
are telling them to come down here and harass the homeless and drive
them out of downtown. You only matter if you’ve got money,
nowadays.”
“I’m concerned,” says the SAFE Oversight Committee Co-Chair, Monica
Goracke of the Oregon Law Center. “I understand this is the result of a
data error, but I don’t know yet whether it’s an isolated error, or if
there are other citations that weren’t captured in the data collection
that normally happens.”
The police bureau is now doing an exhaustive data review by hand,
and Goracke expects to be updated at the next SAFE meeting on July 10.
The mayor’s office, police bureau, and Portland Business Alliance did
not respond to requests for comment by press time.
I am going to be interested in hearing what the final answer as to why it happened is from the Police.
thanks
Patrick
The cops must figgure that the mayor’s committee is stupid, more easily manipulated than the courts, bloggers and journalists, and can be dumbed down with bullsh*t reports.
This miscalculation may cost them access to the future Mayor’s political power, if he assigns the Portland Police Bureau to the portfolio of a less influential city commissioner until they get their internal affairs in order.
Maybe Commissioner Leonard can take away their spray cans for tagging homeless people unfairly and lying to the council. If not, maybe he can reduce their budget to match the honor of their badges.
“data error” = bullshi*t
Not even the police are that incompetent.
I’m sorry but I have a real hard time feeling sorry for someone who is homeless and becomes pregnant, with no ability to care for an infant. People need to take more responsibility for themselves and quit expecting society to take care of them. That goes for all those stupid BI$(#*$ who keep popping out those welfare babies. Get real. We should have government-sponsored birth control.
This is a comment to the comment posted by xyar. You missed the whole purpose of this article! It isn’t about pregnant homeless people. Whatever problems this individual may have, it is not our place to judge. We are all family under God. I think you should worry more about the officials who are running your fair city!!
to me this article is about the fact that several (one wonders how many) of the tickets that were supposed to be overseen by a committee set up by the mayor, were not actually given to the oversight committee… I wonder why and how this happened? has there been any official word as to why or how this happened?
thanks
Patrick
In cities that have attempted similar measures to these, the laws have not passed federal Constitution muster. Furthermore, this Portland law clearly violates the Oregon Constitution as well. The law was passed as a political favor in an election year to local businessmen to get them to contribute funds to Sam Adams and other city council members running for election. The courts will strike it down eventually, and the rogue city council members will still receive their contributions. Goes to show you how easy it is to bribe a Portland city council member and get your own law passed.