Judge rejects injunction over homeless shelter in dispute over city transfers

SANTA ANA -- A legal dust-up over interjurisdictional transfer of homeless people in Orange County ended this week with a federal judge rejecting an injunction aimed at changing how the county operates a seasonal shelter in Santa Ana.

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter's order is without prejudice, however, which he said allows Santa Ana officials "to come back to the court in the future if you believe you can develop relevant information."

"I'm interested in if there's been any affirmative action by the county that would be in violation of their agreement with the court, and I'm not hearing any," Carter said during argument Tuesday, referring to a settlement in a separate case that prohibits the county from transporting homeless people across certain jurisdictional boundaries.

The judge, known for his unorthodoxy, has for two years taken an unusually active role in Orange County's homeless-related litigation, working with lawyers, politicians and law enforcement to settle litigation by creating shelter networks and closing encampments. But Santa Ana's unusual request for the court to intervene in the county's armory shelter operation prompted Carter to ask: "Isn't this a political question?"

"In other words, 'Isn't this a question for the Board of Supervisors in terms of eventual equity or equality?" Carter said. Even if Santa Ana shows the shelter disproportionately harms the city, "I don't think that the federal court ... without a violation of the consent decree, has any business dictating to the Board or respective councils" how to operate it, he said.

"Regardless of my prior activism in terms of homelessness, here I think I'm crossing a very delicate line in terms of the election of the board and the county to resolve this problem between themselves," Carter said. City of Santa Ana v. County of Orange et al., 20CV-00069 (C.D. Cal., filed Jan. 13, 2020).

Carter's rejection of an injunction follows Santa Ana's voluntary dismissal of three cities as defendants when they agreed in writing not to transport homeless people to the shelter. It also quiets an unusual constitutional argument that accused the defendant jurisdictions of harming Santa Ana residents by unfairly contributing to the city's large homeless population, part of a three-claim case that merged municipal politics with the legal fallout over the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal to consider Martin v. Boise.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling prohibits the enforcement of anti-camping ordinances if alternative shelter isn't available. With that in mind, a growing number of Southern California cities are embracing an unprecedented consent decree that gives Carter control over homeless services for three to four years. Six cities -- Placentia, Fullerton, Buena Park, Stanton, Whittier and Bellflower -- updated Carter Tuesday on plans for shelters the judge said will allow for the cleanup of encampments in public gathering places such as parks and commercial centers.

"The cities that put up shelters are going to start clearing with first priority," he said.

He said he'll travel to the cities to resolve disputes rather than have city officials "put on their coat and tie and try to come to court for two hours to explain to Judge Carter what's happening."

Last year, the south Orange County cities of Dana Point, San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano hired Jones Day to successfully argue for Carter's recusal from a now-dismissed lawsuit over those cities' alleged lack of homeless services. Those same cities were sued in Santa Ana's latest action, but Carter quickly rejected a temporary restraining order, and the cities were dismissed as defendants without challenging Carter's standing.

While the judge applauded the shelter plans, he repeatedly lamented the lack of state housing for people with severe mental illnesses, and he implored politicians to contact Gov. Gavin Newsom and urge action.

"You're really the only success story in the state right now," Carter said. "The governor needs to, quite frankly, wake up and pay attention to you."