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"Everything they owned…"

Homeless People Seek Justice in Small Claims Court

By Tom McKay

Fourteen homeless people are suing the City and County of San Francisco and it's agent Community Awareness and Treatment Services, Inc. (CATS), for illegally confiscating and discarding their property during the closing of the Mission Rock Shelter in September of 1999.

Once again, the "Authorities" (i.e., CATS) have stolen the personal property of poor homeless people and disposed of it in the garbage. This time the homeless people are trying to get justice in Small Claims Court. Adam Arms, Staff Attorney for the Coalition On Homelessness is helping them.

Over the past year, approximately 75 people have contacted the Coalition On Homelessness in hopes of pursuing legal action for property rights violations that occurred in 1999 while the Mission Rock Shelter was closing down. On Friday, July 28, thirteen homeless people argued their cases in court. A fourteenth homeless person refused to speak in court because she felt threatened by the legal system and did not feel comfortable about asserting her legal rights, even though she had a valid claim.

The Mission Rock Shelter was the largest homeless shelter in the City of San Francisco, and it provided temporary housing for up to 600 homeless people. It was funded by The City of San Francisco, and managed and staffed by CATS. In September 1999, the City rushed to close Mission Rock so the property could be used for a 5000-space parking lot for the Pacific Bell Baseball Park.

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In order to reduce the number of homeless residents in the shelter, CATS began ejecting shelter residents for minor rule violations, such as missing the curfew. Shelter residents were not allowed to get their property at the time they were shut out. The stated and posted property storage policy at the shelter required shelter staff to identify, tag, and store property for up to 72 hours. When people returned within 72 hours to get their property they were misdirected and humiliated by the CATS staff.

People were typically refused admittance to the storage area to search for their belongings. Eventually they discovered that the shelter staff was disregarding their posted policy and immediately discarding property. When people searched the large dumpsters located behind the shelter they were unable to find their property. In some cases, residents witnessed shelter staff picking through the property of ejected residents for valuables before destroying everything else.

These people suffered physical, mental, emotional, psychological and economic hardships due to the loss of their property. They lost medicines and other items necessary for their health. One person even lost his wheelchair and artificial leg. They lost clothing which was necessary for comfort, cleanliness, work and employment training programs. They also lost identification cards and other paperwork which was difficult to replace. Some irreplaceable personal items, such as family pictures and personal letters, had great sentimental value.

Despite the fact that many of these people lost everything they owned, the emotional and psychological distress caused by their disrespectful and humiliating treatment was their greatest source of pain. The relentless illegal and disrespectful abuse directed towards homeless people by "Authorities" can be devastating. Few people can even imagine how a homeless person feels when they experience this kind of treatment.

City government appear to be conducting an undeclared war against poor and homeless people. Although a growing number of people are calling for permanent solutions and compassionate treatment, the burocrats continue to escalate their mean-spirited attack. When will our government get a heart? THIS IS TOO MUCH INJUSTICE AND TOO MUCH CRUELTY!

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THERAPY COSTS TOO MUCH!!!!
Dee Gray, M.S.W., M.F.C.   Licensed Therapist specializing in advocacy and crisis counseling. Mother, daughter and family counseling. Adoption and juvenile dependency. Literary and creative art counseling. Individual and group therapy. Sliding scale fee. (415) 541-5629.