Homeless Probation

[CdwJava]

It's funny that in liberal Sacramento, they keep identifying sites to build a few hundred temporary structures and tents to house the homeless, but everywhere they propose, the respective council-persons of those districts squawk very loudly, and the locals scream bloody murder. Housing might be a great component of a larger plan ... but, who will be the first to raise their hand and say they want it (along with the associated crime and other issues) next to them? Out here, even with the liberal politicians, NIMBY plays a very definite role.

 

[HighwayMan]

While I am certainly not a medical/mental health professional, I have been dealing with homeless in NYS and NYC for 20 years. From the contacts I have had, I'd judge that close to 100% of the homeless have serious mental health or drug abuse issues, or both.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

It's funny that in liberal Sacramento, they keep identifying sites to build a few hundred temporary structures and tents to house the homeless, but everywhere they propose, the respective council-persons of those districts squawk very loudly, and the locals scream bloody murder. Housing might be a great component of a larger plan ... but, who will be the first to raise their hand and say they want it (along with the associated crime and other issues) next to them? Out here, even with the liberal politicians, NIMBY plays a very definite role.

What do you expect? Not even the most progressive of liberals want a refugee camp next door.

 

[cbg]

The picture conjured up by the words, "refugee camp" do not match the actual picture of the homeless shelter in my town.

http://www.carolinahill.org/

 

[quincy]

The picture conjured up by the words, "refugee camp" do not match the actual picture of the homeless shelter in my town.

http://www.carolinahill.org/

I think too many believe as HighwayMan does that the majority of the homeless are mentally ill or drug abusers, and too many envision residences for the homeless as “tent cities” or “refuge camps” as CdwJava does.

It might be an education to learn that the homeless are also mothers with young children and men who lost their jobs and veterans of all ages. And housing does not mean tents.

Once housing is found, jobs are easier to find.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

The picture conjured up by the words, "refugee camp" do not match the actual picture of the homeless shelter in my town.

http://www.carolinahill.org/

I was referring to @CdwJava description.

sites to build a few hundred temporary structures and tents to house the homeless

That sounds like a "refugee camp" to me.

 

[quincy]

Michigan has several areas of “tiny houses” (many built with the help of high school students) that the homeless can live in temporarily or, depending on the community, rent to buy.

Although compact, these houses have all that a person needs (kitchens, bathrooms, a place to sleep, heat, electricity, water).

 

[HighwayMan]

I think too many believe as HighwayMan does that the majority of the homeless are mentally ill or drug abusers...

Quincy, I did not base my comment on passing contact with a few people in the homeless community. I based it on dealing with the same people over and over again over the course of years. Hundreds. Not just in NYC, but in neighboring counties as well. Every one of my co-workers has stories about the legions of "regulars" that they deal with on a daily basis.

I've sent many to the hospital over the years for obvious drug and alcohol intoxication. Even when they return after a day or two and seem to be "sober" they exhibit very abnormal behaviors. Help is always offered and in almost every case refused.

I can now recall only one case where the people involved did not appear mentally ill or intoxicated. I responded to a complaint of a man and woman sitting in front of a train station with luggage for days at a time, apparently traveling but never going anywhere.

I made contact with them and ascertained that the husband was a paralegal who had gotten laid off and was unable to find employment - he was on the older side. The wife never worked and their well-off family refused to help them by taking them in for a few months to allow them to get on their feet. They were caught in a bad spot and were unable to get real help. I made some contacts with county homeless services on their behalf and the last time I spoke to them the husband said he had a job interview. I never saw them again so I like to think they made out alright. They were the exception to the rule.

Every day before taking my present administrative assignment I was in contact with dozens of homeless in the subways, train stations, on the streets, etc. As far as I'm concerned while housing is an important issue, mental health care is a much bigger factor, and the City of New York has failed miserably there (as well as the other counties I work in, to a lesser extent). The mental health organization founded and led by the mayor's wife is unable to account for over 3/4 of a billion dollars of their funding, and has had no success in making things even minimally better.

Think what you will - I have no idea what it's like anywhere else in the country, but I'll stick with my assessment based upon my day-to-day experiences dealing with this issue up close.

 

[quincy]

Quincy, I did not base my comment on passing contact with a few people in the homeless community. I based it on dealing with the same people over and over again over the course of years. Hundreds. Not just in NYC, but in neighboring counties as well. Every one of my co-workers has stories about the legions of "regulars" that they deal with on a daily basis.

I've sent many to the hospital over the years for obvious drug and alcohol intoxication. Even when they return after a day or two and seem to be "sober" they exhibit very abnormal behaviors. Help is always offered and in almost every case refused.

I can now recall only one case where the people involved did not appear mentally ill or intoxicated. I responded to a complaint of a man and woman sitting in front of a train station with luggage for days at a time, apparently traveling but never going anywhere.

I made contact with them and ascertained that the husband was a paralegal who had gotten laid off and was unable to find employment - he was on the older side. The wife never worked and their well-off family refused to help them by taking them in for a few months to allow them to get on their feet. They were caught in a bad spot and were unable to get real help. I made some contacts with county homeless services on their behalf and the last time I spoke to them the husband said he had a job interview. I never saw them again so I like to think they made out alright. They were the exception to the rule.

Every day before taking my present administrative assignment I was in contact with dozens of homeless in the subways, train stations, on the streets, etc. As far as I'm concerned while housing is an important issue, mental health care is a much bigger factor, and the City of New York has failed miserably there (as well as the other counties I work in, to a lesser extent). The mental health organization founded and led by the mayor's wife is unable to account for over 3/4 of a billion dollars of their funding, and has had no success in making things even minimally better.

Think what you will - I have no idea what it's like anywhere else in the country, but I'll stick with my assessment based upon my day-to-day experiences dealing with this issue up close.

Fair enough.

 

[CdwJava]

While I am certainly not a medical/mental health professional, I have been dealing with homeless in NYS and NYC for 20 years. From the contacts I have had, I'd judge that close to 100% of the homeless have serious mental health or drug abuse issues, or both.

Pretty consistent with my experience as well. Most of those who still have their wits about them often find a way out through whatever resources are available. And if they don't want out, they make the smallest wave possible and often avoid contact and conflict.

 

[CdwJava]

The picture conjured up by the words, "refugee camp" do not match the actual picture of the homeless shelter in my town.

http://www.carolinahill.org/

Not exactly the people that we in law enforcement, and workers on the street dealing with the homeless, have to confront most of the time. It's great to have such resources for families and those who want to get out, but this is simply not the case for the majority of those we do have to interact with.

 

[CdwJava]

Michigan has several areas of “tiny houses” (many built with the help of high school students) that the homeless can live in temporarily or, depending on the community, rent to buy.

Although compact, these houses have all that a person needs (kitchens, bathrooms, a place to sleep, heat, electricity, water).

The same idea has been tried in this region as well - with varying degrees of success. Again, those that want the help and agree to abide by the rules can get the assistance. This is not the case with the majority of the street population, I'm afraid.

 

[quincy]

Police apparently see a different homeless population.

I know in Michigan that, when the psychiatric hospitals were closed years ago, patients were left to fend for themselves. The homeless today are often a different breed - homeless because they lost jobs and then their houses, or runaways, or single moms who could not juggle jobs with parenting.

There are drug addicts, too, who have not found their way to treatment centers.

 

[Zigner]

Police apparently see a different homeless population.

I know in Michigan that, when the psychiatric hospitals were closed years ago, patients were left to fend for themselves. The homeless today are often a different breed - homeless because they lost jobs and then their houses, or runaways, or single moms who could not juggle jobs with parenting.

I agree that there are homeless people who are homeless due to the circumstances you describe, but in my area (Los Angeles), there is a much higher proportion of drug addicted homeless folks than there are folks who are "down on their luck".

 

[quincy]

I agree that there are homeless people who are homeless due to the circumstances you describe, but in my area (Los Angeles), there is a much higher proportion of drug addicted homeless folks than there are folks who are "down on their luck".

Jail is not a solution for the homeless, regardless of circumstances. I fully support the idea of housing first.