The legal strategy that allows the homeless the right to sleep/camp in public moves forward, creating an ominous scenario for Sacramento if it takes hold.
Homeless campers defy UP deadline
No one is evicted, but a rep says the railroad is 'monitoring' the scene.
By M.S. Enkoji - menkoji@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Threatened with trespassing citations, some homeless people camped on Union Pacific Railroad property in northern Sacramento on Monday moved on, but others stood their ground, deeply indignant.
Union Pacific Railroad police had distributed warnings to dozens of homeless people camped on a vacant lot on North B Street owned by the nation's largest railroad. People in the impromptu tent city were told they would be cited and their property confiscated if they didn't leave by early Monday.
"I'll pay the consequences, but I'm not running," said Brenda Wade, who has camped for about a month on the railroad's lot. "This is where I call home."
Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo said a team of advocates and city and county relief workers would visit the site today, offering at least a temporary bridge to help the squatters.
Fargo said the help could be anything from motel vouchers to a bus ticket home.
The railroad did not issue citations Monday morning, but is "monitoring" the situation and will "take further action if it's appropriate," said James Barnes, a company spokesman.
