A well-known homeless advocate in Santa Rosa, California, is taking the city to federal court after being cited for code violations related to the meals and gatherings he holds at his home for unhoused neighbors. Merlin Davis lives across from the 188-bed Sam Jones Homeless Shelter, about four miles from downtown. He says he is just trying to help people in his rural neighborhood, according to KTVU. The city has classified the citations as criminal misdemeanors.
The city’s case focuses on the condition of Davis’s property, not the gatherings. Santa Rosa gave Davis a notice for violating city code, saying he didn’t keep his property free of debris and nuisance conditions. It added that he didn’t keep the culverts in his driveway clear. Both violations are considered criminal misdemeanors.
Davis disagrees that his property is the main problem in this situation. He says the trash on the public road comes from many people who never enter his land, and that the city’s codes don’t match what’s actually happening. He believes the litter is a result of the neighborhood’s behavior in general, not the meals and gatherings he provides…