The American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont is seeking to stop Burlington’s plan to evict three people from a homeless encampment along North Avenue. ACLU attorney Jay Diaz filed a class action lawsuit on Friday morning against the city of Burlington.
A judge later on Friday issued a temporary restraining order that allows the campers to stay until the case is settled.
The city has given the campers until Monday to leave; they can face prosecution or fines if they do not, Diaz said.
Yesterday, city officials dismantled an encampment in Burlington’s South End, arriving with dump trucks to clear out abandoned property.
The 311 North Avenue encampment, located in the woods near the Stone House, is being dismantled for “environmental impact reasons,” said Police Chief Brandon del Pozo.
All three have been camping at the location for several months, according to a news release issued by the ACLU. One them, Croteau, a native Burlingtonian, has been homeless since August 2016. Croteau slept in his car until the city towed the vehicle last February, and he didn’t have the money to pay the fee to retrieve the car, the release said.
The ACLU has argued that removing individuals from an encampment or threatening to seize property when shelters are full constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. The class action lawsuit also extends to “all other similarly situated class members.”
“If there was shelter, then people don’t have a right necessarily to be on public land. This isn’t the case here,” Diaz said. All three plaintiffs have been seeking shelter in the past months, he added.
City attorney Eileen Blackwood said the city isn’t forcing homeless campers to move in most cases, as long as there aren’t safety or other concerns. The North Avenue property, she said, is environmentally sensitive.
On October 6, the ACLU wrote a letter to Mayor Miro Weinberger and del Pozo saying that dismantling the encampments without due process would violate the constitutional rights of those who stay there.
The ACLU did not receive a response to the letter, Diaz said.
“The city has simply ignored our letter, our concerns … and our citations to what other cities are doing,” Diaz said. “It’s time for the city to stand up and take action to protect its citizens.”
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Thank God the ACLU cares. Miro and Del Pozo clearly don’t.
Miro Weinberger wants Burlington to become a “Sanctuary City” for immigrants. (because there’s incentives to be had…) but for the citizens of Vermont, not so much.
If the ACLU truly cared about these homeless people they would be finding them real housing and sueing the city to create more affordable housing and finding jobs for these people. If the homeless were minorities or illegal immigrants the ACLU would have all ready taken care of the problem. The ACLU is full of shitty lawyers that only care about filling their own pockets. Nice of them to wait until just before winter to take up the cause.
I remember Weinberger saying in his campaign that he was going to help the homeless people. So far he has not kept his promise, typical crooked politician!! He only gets what he wants like that worthless town center that could have used the money to build a bigger homeless shelter!!
Hrm.. do they own the property that they are squatting on? No? How would you feel if you owned the property in question? Would you still feel the same way if they were encamping on your land? Something to think about…
Why are you hiding Miro or don’t you have a slick answer why you failed to keep your campaign promise? I s it because the rich are feeding you and you are afraid of what they might say to you? Stop being a wimp and come out and say what you really mean, that you wish they would either go away or die! Chances are it will be number 2 seeing as the cold season is coming and the shelters that exist will be full and you could care less.. The only thing on your mind is how to get more money..
I just read Charles Tinkleman’s letter to the editor and I gouldn’t agree more, it is time for Miro to leave! He is more inbterested in the shady deals he makesa as well as the rich and he does not keep his campaign promises, you might as call him Trump Jr. !!
Interesting that the area is “environmentally sensitive” for 3 homeless people but that the 700 plus units planned there are seen as having less environmental impact.