Charlotte leaders vote to restore criminal enforcement for camping on city property

CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte city council voted Monday night to restore rules that ban camping on city property during Monday night’s strategy meeting.

The camping ordinance is one of many laws that were decriminalized in December as part of a criminal justice reform.

The city brought back criminal enforcement on camping areas where a lot of people who are homeless take shelter.

The enforcement makes it against the law for anyone to camp on public property owned by the city. A violation would make it a class 3 misdemeanor and a fine of $500.

In 2020, a large camp where homeless people gathered just outside of uptown became a health hazard. Mecklenburg County worked with nonprofits in the area to move people, some to hotels, without enforcing trespassing rules or making arrests.

A line in Monday night’s agenda clarifies that the change is not intended to criminalize people who are homeless but would be used in large-scale situations like what was seen during the pandemic.

The agenda says police will first offer resources, rides to shelters or call mobile crisis units before seeking criminal enforcement.

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