Sheriffs and advocates have raised concerns about a new law they say will criminalize homelessness - making it a class C misdemeanor to sleep or camp on public land.
That law was one of a number of new statutes that took effect July 1. Other laws include a school cell phone ban and a requirement for local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration officers.
Lawmakers behind the law banning public camping have argued it won’t criminalize homelessness and aims to connect people with resources and services and move them indoors, especially during extreme weather.
The law could result in a misdemeanor charge if the person stays in the same spot 48 hours after receiving a warning. There are a few exceptions, including if there is no shelter within five miles of the camp.
It also allows for “emergency detentions” if someone is outside during weather that could cause death or serious physical injury.
But Marion County Sheriff Kerry Forestall said he thinks the legislation will lead to costly jail overcrowding.
"Anytime the first thought of how to help the homeless is pulling out a pair of handcuffs, I think that's wrong,” he said. “Law enforcement does not need to be the first line."
Forestall estimates that a single homeless person sent to a local jail could cost a county thousands with the maximum sentence.
Forestall was among those who attended legislative roundtables put on by the Indiana Sheriff’s Association. Those were held across the state to discuss how they will handle new state laws, including the homeless camping law.
At the Marion County meeting, lawmakers, including Rep. Danny Lopez (R-Carmel) and Rep. Mitch Gore (D-Indianapolis), were also in attendance.
Lopez supports the new law and said it was important for law enforcement to have a “stick” to get some people to engage with the resources intended to help them.
“We've got to have a way to push those people into those services, and that's what this is,” Lopez said. “It's easy to say, but it's not accurate to say that this is criminalizing homelessness, because that is not the intent, and that's not the actual outcome of the bill.”
During the most recent legislative session, many lawmakers argued that not enough was being done to reduce the number of people living on the streets, particularly in the Indianapolis downtown.
Lopez said he, like many lawmakers, wrestled with the best way to get people off the streets.
“Before there's any jail or citation or anything else, there has to be engagement. So the goal is really to move people into services that they need, not put them in jail,” he said. “It's a complicated issue, but the bottom line is that at least with the segment of the population, what we are doing currently isn't working.”
But advocates who spoke out against the legislation earlier this year say there may not always be services to push people towards.
“The bill itself does not provide any additional resources for service providers,” said Lauren Murfree, a policy analyst with the Indiana Community Action Policy Coalition.
Murfree said the law could have a serious impact, particularly in more rural areas.
“I live in a rural county, and a lot of Indiana residents live in rural counties,” she said. “There's not much going on here for people who are homeless and struggling, and that's pretty common in rural areas. It's just a lack of resources, a lack of ability to support people in rural areas, in particular.”
Murfree said the law could have focused on supporting organizations already working with unhoused populations. Now she believes money will instead be spent on jail stays.
“Functionally, it is going to force people into jails, which will criminalize them,” she said.
Contact Government Reporter Benjamin Thorp at bthorp@wfyi.org
