Supreme Court hears Grants Pass v. Johnson, ACLU reissues call to uphold eighth amendment protections.
LOS ANGELES—Following oral arguments in Grants Pass v. Johnson today, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU Foundation of Southern California and ACLU affiliates in 18 states who submitted a friend-of-the court brief once again urged the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold Eighth Amendment protections. The brief, filed on April 3, argues that the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishments does not allow cities to issue fines or arrest people for sleeping outside in public when they have no access to adequate shelter.
Grants Pass v. Johnson originated in an Oregon town that passed ordinances barring people from sleeping outside in public using a blanket, pillow, or even a cardboard sheet to lie on. Last year, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that criminally punishing unhoused people under these laws violates the Eighth Amendment if there are no other public areas or appropriate places where those people can sleep.
Similar cases challenging civil rights violations against unhoused people are active in lower courts throughout the country. For example, in Southern California, plaintiffs are currently challenging the City of San Bernardino’s destruction of unhoused people’s property and violations of disability rights. One plaintiff, who uses a wheelchair and has a service dog, could not move her belongings after being ordered to move. When she asked for help, the city destroyed her walker, documents, and other belongings. In another case argued on appeal last month, the City of Sacramento endangered unhoused people by bulldozing their encampments in triple-digit heat.
“Everyone in our state deserves a safe, dignified place to live. We represent unhoused clients—many of whom are older adults with disabilities—whose rights have been violated simply for existing outside,” said Kath Rogers, staff attorney at ACLU SoCal. “The Grants Pass case illustrates the harmful consequences of doing ‘something, anything’ to move unhoused people from public view — addressing the visible symptoms of the housing crisis without solving the underlying causes.”
Read the amicus brief: https://www.aclu.org/cases/city-of-grants-pass-v-johnson?document=Amicus-Brief
Listen to oral arguments: https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_audio/2023