Homelessness case before US supreme court could have far-reaching effects

Justices to consider constitutionality of punishing people for sleeping outside as western states seek to address encampments

A case that could significantly change how US cities respond to the growing homelessness crisis has reached the supreme court as record numbers of people in America find themselves without a permanent place to live.

The justices on Monday will consider a challenge to rulings from a California-based appeals court that found punishing people for sleeping outside when shelter space is lacking amounts to unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment.

The case stems from a 2019 camping ban enacted by city officials in Grants Pass, Oregon, a small mountain town where rents are rising and there is just one overnight shelter for adults. Debra Blake, who had lost her job a decade earlier and was unhoused, was cited for illegal camping. After being convicted and fined, she soon joined other unhoused residents in suing the city over the ordinance.