Homeless “Dumping” Article Makes It Front Page, Above The Fold

Front page center… “Why Skid Row Has Become L.A.’s ‘Dumping’ Ground”. The issue of homeless “dumping” has become front page news in the Los Angeles Times today, with a featured article and photo. For those of us struggling to end homelessness, it is a welcome sight. Here is the article.

Perhaps the community is realizing the gravity of the homeless problem in Los Angeles County. The article also states that nine law enforcement agencies, other than the LAPD, are “dumping” their homeless into downtown Los Angeles. It also states that 16 LAPD divisions from around the city are also part of this practice.

The article begins:

To understand how the streets of downtown Los Angeles have become a depository for drug addicts, parolees and homeless people, just look through the logs of the skid row detox center run by the Volunteers of America.

In the last month alone, dozens of police cruisers from as far away as Carson and Venice have pulled up to the center's doors on Crocker Street near 5th Street, bringing with them more than 150 intoxicated homeless people. The drop-offs have come from nine law enforcement agencies besides the Los Angeles Police Department, according to the records reviewed by The Times, but also from various LAPD divisions, including Hollywood, Pacific and West L.A.

Like the earlier Downtown News article, the Times is also stating that hospitals are part of this “dumping” practice.

The key to solving this “leaf-blower mentality”? The article states:

Many service providers on skid row say they doubt that the situation will change unless the county establishes more services in other areas.

Here at PATH, we have been advocating for such a practice for the past couple of years. Set up regional centers (similar to the PATH Mall) that share the responsibility of helping the homeless throughout the county—not just in downtown.

Here's a map of the area: