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The issue of public encampments makes its way to the Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court is going to take up the issue of camping in public places five years after a Boise case put limits on what cities can do to stop people experiencing homelessness from sleeping outside.

Broadcast on:
29 Jan 2024

A tents sits out in a public space.
(Tania Gail / Flickr)

The U.S. Supreme Court is going to take up the issue of camping in public places five years after a Boise case put limits on what cities can do to stop people experiencing homelessness from sleeping outside.

The decision in the Martin v. Boise case has been cited by many cities, who say homeless encampments have been growing due in part to a lack of affordable housing.

Now a new case that comes from Grants Pass, Oregon, has both cities hoping to curb camping, and homeless advocates who say people have nowhere else to go are turning their focus to the Supreme Court, which will take up the case later this year.

Rachel Spacek is a reporter for the Idaho Statesman, and she took a deep dive into this story and what a Supreme Court decision could mean for Boise's homeless population.