Fresno Police say officers have arrested 139 people since a ban on homeless encampments in public spaces went into effect just over three weeks ago.
One of those people is 48-year-old William Erwin.
“It’s called ‘Sit, Lie, Sleep, Camp: Public Area,’ that’s what I got in trouble for,” said Erwin. “I heard I was supposed to get a warning, I didn’t get no warning. They woke me up first thing in the morning. The sun was barely coming up and took me to jail.”
He says after being told to move out of his encampment Wednesday, he was sleeping on the sidewalk near the intersection of Divisadero and H streets when Fresno Police arrested him on Thursday.
“I was pretty devastated, crushed. I wanted to cry,” said Erwin.
This arrest comes after the city’s illegal camping ordinance went into effect last month, banning unhoused people from camping in public spaces.
“The officers have been citywide, working every day, they finally have had the opportunity to address some of the folks that have just been repeating problems at locations, repeat pile-ups of trash, or repeat complaints from neighbors,” said interim Fresno police Chief Mindy Casto says officers do not have to give people warnings, but law enforcement had been in contact with Erwin the day before his arrest.