Lack of ID may keep homeless out in heat

By Timothy Pratt (contact)

Friday, July 15, 2005 | 9:55 a.m.

As the Las Vegas Valley entered its 15th consecutive day of 100-degree temperatures Thursday, some people were saying that one of the area's most at-risk populations faced an obstacle when it comes to getting relief from the heat: no ID.

Homeless men using the taxpayer-funded Catholic Charities daytime shelter -- a service resulting from area government making a first-ever formal search this year for shelter from the heat -- said the nonprofit organization only lets in those with identification.

If the policy is upheld -- and an administrative employee for the organization said it was in place Thursday morning, though a spokeswoman later denied the policy altogether -- then dozens of homeless men may be staying away from the shelter, even when soaring temperatures and the precarious medical conditions found among many who live in the street make the lack of shelter life-threatening.

"That's the most amazing thing I've heard in awhile," said John Farrel, who is out on the streets daily as part of his work for Nevada Health Centers Inc., an organization that runs a clinic for the homeless.

Lack of identification has been cited repeatedly in recent years as a key obstacle for the homeless in the valley. In a 2004 survey of homeless men and women, 18 percent said they had no ID.

As for emergency shelter in summer and winter, in years past, public funds were often stitched together at the last minute as temperatures rose or sunk to fund cavernous shelters downtown. Meanwhile, from 2002 on, at least 13 homeless people died in part due to the heat during summer monthns.

This year, a regional group led by Clark County Manager Thom Reilly got backing for $77,808 in public funds to open a shelter for men at Catholic Charities from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., beginning July 1 and ending Sept. 30.

But homeless men outside the shelter Thursday afternoon around 3 p.m. -- as high temperatures hit 115 degrees around the valley -- said the respite from the heat wasn't available to all.

"Everybody on the street knows that if you don't have no ID, you can't get in. It ain't no secret," said 28-year-old Jeremy Welsh, who had been using the shelter almost since it opened.

Welsh said he had seen two homeless men turned away in recent days for lack of ID.

"It's our policy to ask for ID," Cliff Jones, administrative coordinator for residential services at Catholic Charities, said Thursday morning.

Asked why, he said, "You can't just give shelter ... it's hard to explain ... if you were here every day, you'd understand."

Jones also said he did not "see this being an issue" and that the shelter was full to capacity -- with 100 men -- most of the time anyway.

Also, he said, "People can get IDs ... all they have to do is go and pursue it." He told a story about how he once lost his wallet and was able to replace his identification quickly.

Later Thursday morning, Sharon Mann, Catholic Charities spokeswoman, called the Sun to say she want to "clarify" the organization's policy.

She said workers at the shelter asked for identification, but didn't require it for admission. She said identification was used as a way of gathering information about those who used the shelter.

Workers gathered information about the men who didn't have identification through a short interview, she said. The information was collected on forms.

She said she didn't know how many men were let in the shelter without identification since it had opened, or if any had been turned away for not having identification.

Jones said no one had been turned away.

Linda Lera-Randle El, director of a nonprofit organization called Straight from the Streets, said it can take from weeks to months for homeless people to replace their identification once lost.

She also said word of mouth travels on the streets and those who don't have IDs may be staying away.

"It could be very serious if someone doesn't seek shelter" because he assumes he won't get in, she said.

"I thought this shelter meant get them out of the heat to save lives."

Dog McElroy, a 47-year-old man who found trees for shade outside the shelter Thursday afternoon, said, "If you got your ID, it's a Cadillac place to be."

"If you don't ... your ass is out."