Miami Beach commission approves plan to arrest homeless people if they refuse shelter bed

MIAMII — The Miami Beach City Commission on Wednesday voted 4-3 to adopt an ordinance that will allow for police to arrest homeless people within city limits if they refuse to go to a shelter.

The municipal legislation takes effect in 10 days and does away with a warning that police had to issue before they make an arrest.

Mayor Dan Gelber and Commissioners Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, Steven Meiner and Alex Fernandez voted for the measure while Commissioners Ricky Arriola, Laura Dominguez and David Richardson voted against the ordinance.

During the meeting, speakers told the commission that the measure was essentially criminalizing being homeless.

According to the Miami Herald, the Miami Beach legislation mirrors a similar proposal adopted by the city of Orlando that prohibits sleeping outdoors on public property. The newspaper reported that the Central Florida city’s law was upheld by the federal appeals court in 2000.

Miami Beach commissioners signaled their intent to adopt the plan in September.

“We can not have encampments in the city,” Gelber said then. “We can not be like you see in San Francisco where it’s just a city of homeless. If you’re going to attack this issue, you’ve got to provide housing for people and shelter and we’re prepared to do that.”

South Florida cities have been thinking about ways to help the homeless or those in danger of losing permanent shelter what with soaring rents.

The Miami-Dade Homeless Trust has been working to provide help for those facing the possibility of being homeless.