The city council in Summit, New Jersey, is working to revise a proposed ban on homeless encampments that would jail and fine those found guilty.
Summit’s council is set to meet on May 13 to present an amended ordinance that will “prevent any penalization of involuntary homelessness,” Gothamist reports. The move comes a month after the council proposed a law that would impose a $2,000 fine and up to 90 days in jail on anyone found sleeping or camping on public property.
“There’s no legal basis for giving an unhoused person a summons, fining them, putting them in jail when their only ‘crime’ is that they can’t afford to live indoors,” said Attorney Jeff Wild, a founder of the nonprofit New Jersey Coalition to End Homelessness.
The city council delayed a vote scheduled in April after entering into discussions with Wild, who criticized the original ordinance for violating a person’s right to pursue and obtain safety as outlined in the New Jersey Constitution. The revised ordinance also states that anyone without access to “available indoor housing” will not face prosecution under the new law.
The change follows public backlash at a packed city council meeting where residents blasted the original proposal for criminalizing homelessness and breaching constitutional rights. Public testimony on the proposed camping ban lasted nearly four hours during last month’s council hearing, stretching into the early hours of the next day.
Republican Summit Councilmember Jamel Boyer introduced the ordinance weeks after claiming a homeless man with a knife allegedly confronted his 11-year-old daughter and other children in downtown Summit. Boyer argues the law is necessary to prevent a rise in the city’s homeless population.
“ It will continue,” Boyer said. “So it’s not just about the five. It’s about the next five, or the next five after that.”
Residents will have a chance to voice their opinions during the May 13 city council meeting.
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