SPOKANE — City leaders announced plans they hope will end public camping and open drug use in downtown, by giving police officers more discretion to issue citations.
“The people of Spokane are united around the goal of ending public camping. We know that it’s inhumane for those individuals and has secondary impacts on the rest of our city and businesses,” Mayor Lisa Brown said. “We want open drug use in our city to end.”
Mayor Lisa Brown, Police Chief Kevin Hall, and non-profits who will assist made the announcement this morning.
The mayor says the city does not fund or run the healthcare system, but there are healthcare and behavioral health providers committed to this work.
The announcement coincides with the launch of a daytime navigation center and new coordinated street outreach teams.
“I think we need to be clear. Spokane is not a rich city. Microsoft and Amazon have invested millions in housing on the westside…here in Spokane, we do not have an organization putting up millions or even one million.”
Officials will draft recommendations for updating the city’s engagement and enforcement ordinance in collaboration with community partners and the Spokane Police Department.
Police Chief Hall said officers need more discretion in determining when citations and arrests are appropriate.
“We recognize that some of the things we’ve tried in the past are not working. The first thing you’re going to see change is the HOME ordinance.
It’ll give officers the discretion of who should and should not be arrested. Who should be brought to services [or a shelter]” Chief Hall said.
He added that they’ve identified folks who are the highest consumers of all the services in this city like police, fire, and healthcare in the city. He said all of them have charges against them.
“This is not going to be easy…people will be rearrested and go back to jail because some of them have been homeless for decades. Some have been dealing with addiction for decades.”
“We don’t want to just move them, we want to navigate them off the streets,”
Mayor Brown said.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
COPYRIGHT 2025 BY KXLY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
