Editorial: The worst ticket in town

Wednesday, March 8, 2006 | 7:25 a.m.

It is a sad day when a city tickets those who feed homeless people.

According to a story in Tuesday's Las Vegas Sun, resident Gail Sacco is heading to Las Vegas Municipal Court on March 20 because her practice of feeding homeless people in Circle Park violates a Las Vegas ordinance that prohibits gatherings of more than 25 people without a permit.

Sacco has been feeding people in the Huntridge neighborhood park at 2 p.m. nearly every day since June. City marshals say the gatherings didn't violate the more-than-25 rule until Feb. 19 when they counted at least that many people convening around the tables provided by Sacco and her volunteers.

In their zeal to make a point, the marshals not only issued a citation but also banned Sacco from returning to the public park for six months. If she does return, she will be cited for trespassing. Allen Lichtenstein, local attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, said Sacco hasn't been convicted of anything and banning her from the park is unconstitutional.

Advocates for homeless people say that merely feeding them won't solve the real problem, which is getting these people into homes. We agree. But we also don't think that the problem will be solved by ticketing people who try to fill gaps that government programs haven't closed or banning volunteers from public places without due process of law.

One advocate for homeless people told the Sun about a program in Miami where social services counseling and information is provided at city-approved sites for feeding poor people. This is a way to deal with the problem, rather than simply trying to hide it or move it around.

Las Vegas officials have spent time and energy creating an effective system through which they can ticket residents who feed homeless people. It would be good to see some of that same creativity and energy applied to feeding and housing those who need it.