Whenever one of our cities gets a star turn as host of some
super-sparkly event, such as a national political gathering or the Super
Bowl, its first move is to tidy up — by having the police sweep
homeless people into jail, out of town, or under some rug.
But Houston’s tidy-uppers aren’t waiting for a world-class event to rationalize going after homeless down-and-outers. They’ve preemptively outlawed the “crime” of dumpster diving in the Texan city.
“I was just basically looking for something to eat,” he told the Houston Chronicle.
But, unbeknownst to both this indigent tourist and the great majority
of Houston’s generally generous citizens, an ordinance dating way back
to 1942 says that “molesting garbage containers” is illegal. In March,
James Kelly, a 44-year-old Navy veteran, was passing through Houston on
his way to connect with family in California. Homeless, destitute, and
hungry, he chose to check out the dining delicacies in a trash bin near
City Hall. Spotted by police, Kelly was promptly charged with
“disturbing the contents of a garbage can in the [central] business
district.” Seriously.
Read on...
Read on...
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