People experiencing homelessness gather at First United Methodist Church on Spruce Street in Boulder near the Pearl Street Mall on April 28, 2021. (Derek Miles for Colorado Newsline)
The city of Boulder Friday responded in court to a lawsuit brought by unhoused residents represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado. The suit alleges that the city’s camping and tent bans violate the Colorado Constitution.
In the motion, the city defended the bans and requested the Boulder District Court dismiss the case.
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According to the lawsuit from the ACLU, the bans violate doctrines and constitutional provisions related to cruel and unusual punishment, state-created danger, freedom to use public streets, freedom to travel and freedom to remain.
Boulder’s camping ban leaves unhoused residents no alternatives, plaintiffs say
In the motion filed by Luis Toro, the attorney for Boulder and Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold, who is named as a defendant, he argued the bans are not cruel and unusual punishment and do not constitute a state-created danger. He wrote that unlike a similar ordinance disputed in Boise, Idaho, unhoused people can lawfully remain in Boulder public spaces.
Regarding sheltering in public spaces, the motion says that being “bundled in warm clothing is permitted” as long as a shelter is not used.
The motion says that the ACLU’s claim regarding a state-created danger towards unhoused residents is due to extreme weather and not “private violence.” It says the city does not place residents in danger, because the local shelter — Boulder Shelter for the Homeless — is the entity that denies their admittance, not Herold or the city.
The third alleged constitutional violation touches on the use of public spaces. The motion says freedom to travel does not give the right to “sleep, rest and recuperate.” Toro argued in the motion that disallowing encampments and “tent cities” preserves public spaces for others. According to the motion, allowing residents to camp outside when they are denied shelter access would permit them to do so permanently.
The motion was filed a few weeks after the ACLU submitted the initial complaint. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE
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by Zoe Schacht, Colorado Newsline June 22, 2022
The city of Boulder Friday responded in court to a lawsuit brought by unhoused residents represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado. The suit alleges that the city’s camping and tent bans violate the Colorado Constitution.
In the motion, the city defended the bans and requested the Boulder District Court dismiss the case.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
According to the lawsuit from the ACLU, the bans violate doctrines and constitutional provisions related to cruel and unusual punishment, state-created danger, freedom to use public streets, freedom to travel and freedom to remain.
Boulder’s camping ban leaves unhoused residents no alternatives, plaintiffs say
In the motion filed by Luis Toro, the attorney for Boulder and Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold, who is named as a defendant, he argued the bans are not cruel and unusual punishment and do not constitute a state-created danger. He wrote that unlike a similar ordinance disputed in Boise, Idaho, unhoused people can lawfully remain in Boulder public spaces.
Regarding sheltering in public spaces, the motion says that being “bundled in warm clothing is permitted” as long as a shelter is not used.
The motion says that the ACLU’s claim regarding a state-created danger towards unhoused residents is due to extreme weather and not “private violence.” It says the city does not place residents in danger, because the local shelter — Boulder Shelter for the Homeless — is the entity that denies their admittance, not Herold or the city.
The third alleged constitutional violation touches on the use of public spaces. The motion says freedom to travel does not give the right to “sleep, rest and recuperate.” Toro argued in the motion that disallowing encampments and “tent cities” preserves public spaces for others. According to the motion, allowing residents to camp outside when they are denied shelter access would permit them to do so permanently.
The motion was filed a few weeks after the ACLU submitted the initial complaint. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE
Colorado Newsline is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Colorado Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Quentin Young for questions: info@coloradonewsline.com. Follow Colorado Newsline on Facebook and Twitter.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.
Zoe Schacht is a reporter for Colorado Newsline. In December 2022, she will graduate from the University of Colorado Boulder with a degree in journalism and a minor in communication. At CU, Zoe was Editor-in-Chief for the CU Independent where she gained a passion for journalism and storytelling.
Colorado Newsline provides fair and accurate reporting on politics, policy and other stories of interest to Coloradans. Newsline is based in Denver, and coverage of activities at the Capitol are central to its mission, but its reporters are devoted to providing reliable information about topics that concern readers in all parts of the state, from Lamar to Dinosaur, from Durango to Sterling.
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Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site.