Could Orlando’s proposed disorderly conduct ordinance be used to target the homeless?
Anne Linkletter has slept on the streets of Orlando for months as she awaits housing, finding a place on sidewalks, under overpasses and anywhere she feels safe.
She said she and others who live similarly worry an ordinance under consideration by Orlando’s city council could be used to deny unsheltered people this small bit of refuge.
The ordinance clarifies what is “disorderly conduct,” specifically noting that a person who “walks, stands, sits, lies or places an object in such a manner as to intentionally block passage by another person” would be in violation.
It was unanimously voted forward last month by the city council, who is scheduled to vote on whether to enact it on Monday.
“If this ordinance is passed, I believe with every bit of my heart and soul it will be used to target the homeless people of Orlando,” Linkletter, 62, said.
City officials say that’s not their intent.
They said the ordinance was crafted to keep sidewalks clear for pedestrians and could be used to combat people distributing marketing materials, collecting signatures, soliciting donations, or fighting, said Cassandra Bell, a spokesperson for Mayor Buddy Dyer.
“The ordinance is not aimed at people sleeping at sidewalks, only at those individuals who intentionally block sidewalks and refuse to move when asked,” Bell said.
An unsigned statement from the Orlando Police Department last month said the ordinance shouldn’t “disproportionately impact anyone” and also noted the dangers of blocked sidewalks.
“The ordinance will allow officers anywhere in the city to take immediate action against anyone who is intentionally trying to limit movement on City sidewalks,” the statement reads. “It is inherently dangerous for people to be moved into the street or to have their path intentionally blocked.”
Violators of the proposal would face punishments including a fine of up to $500, up to 60 days in jail or six months of probation.
Martha Are, the CEO of the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida, said her organization has concerns about the ordinance, as homelessness has risen 75% since 2019. Officials estimate about 200 people sleep on Orlando’s streets each night, and shelter beds are full nearly every night.
Are said she’s met with the city attorney and is working with various homeless services providers to help keep their clients in compliance should the ordinance pass.
“Our concern is for those people who have no choice but to live on our streets,” Are said in a statement. “In some places, it is already illegal to sleep in public places – including parks and on benches. And since it’s also illegal to trespass on private property, our unsheltered neighbors could find themselves violating the law essentially by merely surviving. Any arrest or fine will only exacerbate the challenges they face in regaining housing.”
Eric Gray, who runs the Christian Service Center in Parramore, said he too has been briefed by city officials about the ordinance, and he’s taking Orlando’s leaders at their word that the homeless won’t be targeted.
Gray, who serves hundreds daily at a campus near Exploria Stadium, said he hopes the rule could give OPD more authority to remove people who try to do business on sidewalks outside of the Christian Service Center, or try to scam his clients. For now, he isn’t overly worried about it, but said he’ll monitor arrests in the city to see how it’s used.
“I actually think what they’re doing is probably a step in the right direction,” he said, but noted other cities across the country have used sidewalk enforcement to remove the homeless.
Tim McKinney, who lives downtown and runs the nonprofit United Global Outreach, said he worries that even if the ordinance wasn’t intended for use on the homeless, individual police officers could do so anyway.
“Even though the police chief and the mayor may have the best of intentions, street-level cops can make decisions that violate the liberties of the homeless,” he said.
