Early Wednesday, state cops responded to clear a homeless encampment on Caltrans property under Highway 580 in Oakland, but found they were barred from entering because a girl had chained herself to the fence.
The woman was Andrea Henson, an attorney and executive director of the homeless organization Where Do We Go, who claimed the eviction was an illegal displacement. When Henson refused to maneuver away from the fence, she was arrested by the California Highway Patrol.
“I don't care how poor you are. If you're homeless or retired, you're entitled to due process,” Henson said in an interview after she was released from jail a couple of hours later. “Caltrans is not above the law.”
Since Governor Newsom issued an executive order on July 25 directing state agencies to step up their efforts to clear homeless encampments, activists have feared that the rights of the homeless may very well be trampled on in the frenzy to comply with the order. The move got here after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson, which overturned a precedent and gave the federal government the authority to ban homeless encampments even when no other shelter is offered.
Wednesday morning's sweep was an example of sweeps going too far, Henson said.
The camp's primary resident, John Cardone, a 70-year-old former truck driver, had signed a sublease in 2020 to park his RVs on the Caltrans property at Louise Street and Highway 580 for $350 a month, based on documents reviewed by the brand new organization. He lived there for years together with his partner, son and daughter.
After paying rent for a yr from March 2020 to March 2021, Cardone stopped paying rent throughout the pandemic.
Still, Caltrans would have needed to undergo formal legal proceedings to evict him, based on a brief restraining order filed by Where Do We Go in court on Wednesday to forestall the eviction.
Instead, on August 5, just two days before the eviction, Caltrans posted signs throughout the location warning that any property left there could be removed, the injunction states.
Neither Caltrans nor the California Highway Patrol responded to a request for comment.
By afternoon, Henson was back on the campground, continuing to plead with Caltrans officials to not impound Cardone's RV.
In a live video posted by Henson on Facebook, Cardone said Caltrans employees told him he had to go away the development site or face jail time.
Henson worries about residents like Cardone who may very well be forced to maneuver quickly without facing justice. It's also unclear where Cardone's family will go next.
“Nobody is paying attention and the state does what it wants,” said Henson. “Without oversight, there is a regime of terror against our most vulnerable.”
Originally published:
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