Mayor Smiley is intensifying his war on unhoused people
Instead of heeding the news that its policies are cruel and killing people, the Administration of Mayor Smiley is doubling down and accelerating its abuse of unhoused people in the City.
On Friday at 8 am the Providence Police Department issued trespass orders to unhoused people in a small tent encampment well back from public scrutiny. The police informed those at the encampment that they were to leave the area, with anything they could carry, by noon the same day. [You can see an example of a trespass order here.1]
See: Dispersed encampments and a new street drug are killing people in Providence
Instead of heeding the news that its policies are cruel and killing people, the Administration of Providence Mayor Brett Smiley is doubling down and accelerating its abuse of unhoused people in the City.
I spoke to an advocate by phone:
Advocate: The smaller encampments have been getting these no-trespass orders. The police hand them out and sometimes they'll say 24 hours, sometimes they'll say four hours, six hours, three hours, whatever the case may be. They hand these no-trespass orders and then the campers have to get out that day.
When it was just one or two tents we thought maybe it was because there's a park nearby. We were hoping that this wouldn't happen again. But then we started hearing from people in tents in other places around Providence.
There were about 12 people out there. They were well hidden. We don't know how the officers knew about it. Some campers blame Better Lives Rhode Island and House of Hope, saying that if we didn't go to them with supplies and check in on them, the police wouldn't know where they were. That's not true. But still...
Steve Ahlquist: That's their impression. That's what they're feeling, and that feeling can cause people to avoid seeking your assistance.
Advocate: And they're telling us they don't bother calling us because there was nothing we can do about it. These are the people that we moved to the churchyard. The church lasted one week when we were told it was going to last weeks. Then they had to be moved from the church to this secret squirrel spot. And now from this secret squirrel spot, they were given three hours to move this morning.
[Note: After 85 people were evicted from two large encampments by Mayor Smile a month ago, some people found refuge in a church parking lot. (At the time I did not report on this because I wanted to give the people there as much privacy and space as possible, but television news reported on this.) The idea was to keep people there until housing could be found for them by providers. It didn’t work.]
Steve Ahlquist: Can I ask what happened to the church?
Advocate: There was too much pressure from the neighbors. The neighbors were threatening their safety. The priest involved, the pastor of the church, was concerned for their safety. Online threats were being made by one of the neighbors.
Some of these people have moved three or more times since Mayor Smiley's first encampment raid, so they're sick of it. They're sick of it. They're done with it.
I sent an Access to Public Records Request [APRA] to Providence Mayor Brett Smiley and the Providence Police Department this morning. I wrote:
“The Attorney General is on this email only to have documentation about when this request was made. The request has also been put into the online portal. Still, it is being sent in an email so the relevant departments will have advanced notice and can begin pulling the requested material together.
“The request:
“I need all documents and incident reports from the Providence Police Department pertaining to the use of trespass forms (see attached) and the enforcement thereof. I need copies of every trespass form issued, along with details about how long people were told they could stay before they were forced to move.
“I also need the body cam footage from every such interaction. The dates I'm interested in are May 14, 2024, to June 16, 2024.
“I will put in additional weekly requests for future dates.
“In general, I am looking for what was said, how long the time period was, who the officers pursuing these actions are, and the names of the property owners who allegedly "signed" these forms.
“I am also interested in the communications between all members of the Smiley Administration about homeless encampments, and any emails or communications between members of the administration and the Providence Police about the same.
“As people are dying, time is of the essence, and I would appreciate a prompt reply to my requests.
“Thank you in advance,”
Minutes later I received the following clarification email from the City:
“Dear Requester,
“Regarding your reference to documents and incident reports pertaining to the trespass forms, please advise if you are referencing a specific location in the City of Providence. If so, what is that location?”
I replied:
“As these incidents are happening all over the city, this is a city-wide request.”
The only example of a trespass order I have been able to get was done on behalf of a property owner identified as Mark Van Noppen, whose only Rhode Island political contributions are to Mayor Smiley. I sent Van Noppen an email as well:
I have questions:
1. Did you contact the police or the Smiley Administration about the unhoused people?
2. Did someone from the Administration or the police department contact you about the unhoused people?
3. Obviously, you did not fill out the trespass order. Are you aware that your name is on the trespass order?
4. How many trespass orders have you consented to?
5. Are you aware of other landlords and/or property owners who may have consented to or initiated such trespass orders?
6. As a person who gave $1500 dollars2 in campaign contributions to Brett Smiley, did you have any personal conversations with him regarding this subject?
7. Are you comfortable with the police using your name on a form targeting unhoused people?
8. Were you given a chance to sign the complaint form?
Thank you for your time. I may have more questions in the future.
Steve- thank you for your consistent determination to report the facts and shine a light on the actions and practices of the Smiley administration relative to their cruel treatment of people without housing. Keep making it hard to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to our neighbors.
Increasingly even more dystopian by the day. The criminalization of poverty is the fuel of the collapse of a civilized society.