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Oklahoma anti-camping law at odds with local initiatives aimed at homelessness

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Oklahoma anti-camping law at odds with local initiatives aimed at homelessness


When Lisa P. lost her motel job in October 2023, she and her partner, John P., also lost their home. A room at the inn was included with Lisa’s employment. With nowhere to go and no safety net of family or friends to fall back on, the couple, both in their early 40s, took to the streets of Oklahoma City, homeless and sleeping in a tent. 

On June 13, the two took shelter from the sun under W Oklahoma City Blvd. 

They usually camp on state property, like in the shade of overpasses, and officers don’t usually bother them, they said. They are quiet and keep to themselves, along with their 8-month-old pit bull, Faith, who kept a keen eye on the raucous group of younger people occupying the other side of the underpass, across the street. 

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Soon, Senate Bill 1854 will require officers to take action with people such as Lisa and John. 

Effective Nov. 1, Oklahoma will join several other states including Kentucky, Florida, Missouri, Georgia and Texas, in enacting a statewide anti-camping law that will limit where the estimated 3,800 Oklahomans experiencing homelessness are allowed to sleep when unsheltered.

Those bans were adapted from model legislation provided by The Cicero Institute, an Austin, Texas-based think tank that works to persuade legislators nationwide to strengthen unauthorized camping laws and require government-sanctioned homeless encampments. 

Oklahoma’s new law is a watered-down version of stricter anti-camping bans like those approved this year in Kentucky and Florida that fall almost perfectly in line with the Institute’s Reducing Street Homelessness Act. 

OPINION: Homeless people in Oklahoma City want jobs. It’s easier said than done

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Statewide, many social service groups oppose the new law and the Cicero model bill behind it, calling them inhumane and a further hindrance to fixing the real problems behind homelessness. 

Driving people into hiding rather than providing them with life-or-death assistance is an injustice of human rights, they contend. Service providers want the state to direct action and attention to supporting their city-wide efforts rather than passing legislation that adds to the plight of Oklahoma’s homeless. 

“One of our main concerns, outside of the dehumanizing impact that some of these bills have, is they’re punitive, and they’re criminalizing people who are already incredibly vulnerable,” said Meghan Mueller, CEO of The Homeless Alliance in Oklahoma City. 

Oklahoma’s law criminalizes camping on unauthorized state land or rights-of-way such as under bridges or alongside public roads and highways.

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Offenders can be fined up to $50, charged with a misdemeanor and sentenced up to 15 days in jail if they refuse to relocate themselves and their belongings to authorized areas or accept a ride from law enforcement officers to a nearby shelter or service provider.

“There are not nearly enough shelters in the state, nor is there enough program funding to assist the thousands of Oklahomans who do not have a safe place to call home,” Mark Davis, the chief programs officer of Mental Health Association Oklahoma told Oklahoma Watch via email.

“We have a dire lack of affordable housing in this state already, and criminal charges often disqualify individuals from options that are available,” he said.

Not all legislators agree with the new camping ban. Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, voted against it, speaking out in the bill’s debate on the Oklahoma State Senate floor. 

“The law could derail the real progress we are making to build trust and connect people with the resources they need to rebuild a thriving life,” Kirt told Oklahoma Watch. 

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Oklahoma City homelessness: 2024 Point in Time count shows 28% increase, yet progress made

Avoiding worse outcomes

“We’re not trying to ensnare people in the criminal justice system,” said Devon Kurtz, the public safety policy director at The Cicero Institute. “The intention is not to have this be enforced in such a way that all of these individuals are going before judges and getting fines.” 

Kurtz said encouraging police interaction with people before they create encampments of multiple tents could curtail worse legal outcomes. 

He gave a hypothetical example of a spot in a park where a couple of unhoused people set up camp. Then a few more join, and two weeks later another six people join. Suddenly, the area has become a small compound and law enforcement is bound to get involved, Kurtz said.

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“Someone brings some sort of propane tank and open burner, (which could explode) and someone else is doing drugs, and it just gets unwieldy,” Kurtz said. “Police are able to charge them with felonies, trespassing or public endangerment; they’re going to find parts of the criminal code that will apply to resolve the situation.”

Kurtz said cities avoid situations like this by charging the minimum misdemeanor possible rather than finding other types of criminal charges.

More: Housing groups launch new homelessness council after Stitt dissolved the official one

Concerns about state’s trajectory in fighting homelessness

The new state law collides with the Housing First model, which is the framework for Tulsa and Oklahoma City coalitions fighting homelessness at the grassroots level. 

The Cicero Institute asserts that Housing First is a broken model. Kurtz called Housing First a failed experiment. 

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The National Low Income Housing Association stated that the Cicero punitive measures are ineffective, outdated, and dangerous.

The Cicero push against Housing First and toward government-sanctioned homeless encampments sparks deep concerns in Oklahomans working at local levels to reduce homelessness in a humane and permanent way.

They would rather see more money invested in shelters and housing initiatives. They are concerned with sanctioned encampments pushing people out of sight into areas with large numbers of residents and few rules and resources.

With shelters full, more than 500 people sleep unsheltered nightly in Tulsa. Oklahoma City is short about 433 shelter beds. 

“So if you expect them all to have to stay in a sanctioned encampment, it’s either going to have to be a very large encampment or multiple smaller encampments,” Josh Sanders, the director of outreach at Tulsa Day Center, said.

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He said the outcomes for people living unsheltered are better when they stay in small camps where they have more control over who they live with. 

“When you force 100 people to live together, chances are you’re going to have a significant number of those people who don’t get along, and you’d have issues that arise out of those people,” Sanders said.

Law could disrupt housing effort

Key to Home in Oklahoma City and Pathway to Home in Tulsa are moving camp by camp, housing the residents and cleaning up the old encampments. 

In both cities, the Continuums of Care have tacit agreements with law enforcement not to break up encampments where nonprofit coalitions are working to rehouse the residents. 

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Camping bans and sanctioned camps are steps toward destabilizing the progress that active, on-the-ground nonprofits are working toward, Sanders said. 

SCOTUS could rule

The U.S. Supreme Court could soon decide that Cicero-inspired anti-camping legislation like Oklahoma’s equates to cruel and unusual punishment as defined under the Eighth Amendment. 

The court heard a case out of Grant’s Pass, Oregon. At issue is whether enforcing camping bans on public property is constitutional when a jurisdiction has too few shelter beds available for its homeless population, as is the case in Oklahoma.

The Cicero Institute is one of dozens of groups that filed amicus curiae, or friend of the court briefs, in the case. The brief claims camping bans are a compassionate way to redirect unsheltered homeless individuals to existing shelters. 

The Grant’s Pass decision will guide how aggressively states and localities can police their homeless while protecting the Constitutional rights of people living on the streets across America. 

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Oklahoma’s homeless waiting for help

If camping bans are enforced in Oklahoma, Lisa and John said they’ll do what they see many other Oklahomans living on the streets do; they’ll head to wooded areas of the cities and try to stay out of view. 

They don’t agree with the law and said they’d take a $50 fine. Police know they can’t pay that. 

“But I ain’t going to jail,” Lisa said. 

The couple said they might support the idea of a government-sanctioned encampment if the shelters have locks or security. 

They said that having a safe, legal space that assists with their basic human needs, such as insulation, food, bathrooms, and showers, would provide some relief from the intense stress of street homelessness. 

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The theft of his ID was a big setback for John, who said he was supposed to start a job but couldn’t without identification. Theft is one of the biggest threats people face on the streets. 

They’ve tried to navigate the city’s Continuum of Care system, doing everything they know to do. But so far, their names haven’t come up on the Homeless Management Information System as eligible for housing. 

“They’re finally starting to house people but it’s just so slow,” John said.

Lisa and John said the crackdown on camping is wrong. If shelters are full, why should law enforcement be pushing people off state land? 

“All they’re going to do is take you to a homeless shelter that has no beds, or they’re going to take you to a food bank,” John said. “It’s pointless.”

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Lisa agreed, saying camping bans hurt more people than they help.

While Lisa and John wait for their names to come up for rehousing, they said police are already actively dismantling encampments. They see a disconnect between the way local law enforcement handles homelessness and how nonprofits are trying to alleviate the problem. 

“Police are over here trying to break up the camps, and the housing people are over here trying to house those camps at the same time,” John said.

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.



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Oklahoma

Mizzou, Oklahoma Availability Report – Brady Cook’s Encouraging Status

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Mizzou, Oklahoma Availability Report – Brady Cook’s Encouraging Status


The No. 24 Missouri Tigers shared positive injury updates in the first availability report of the week ahead of their Week 11 matchup with Oklahoma.

This article will be updated with the new reports leading up to game day.

Missouri Wednesday Availability Report:

• QB Brady Cook – Questionable
• 
RB Nate Noel – Questionable
• 
OL Logan Reichert – Questionable
LG Cayden Green – Probable
WR Mookie Cooper – Doubtful
• 
LB Brayshawn Littlejohn – Doubtful

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Starting quarterback Brady Cook was listed as doubtful the Wednesday and Thursday ahead of Missouri’s Week 9 battle with Alabama, but starts this week off with a better designation. He’s dealing with an ankle injury he suffered against Auburn and a upper body injury he suffered against Alabama.

Starting running back Nate Noel and wide receiver Mookie Cooper fully missed the game against Alabama, with Noel because of a foot injury suffered against Auburn and an unknown injury for Cooper.

Oklahoma Wednesday Availability Report:

Here’s the information without bolding:

• WR Jayden Gibson – Out
• WR Nic Anderson – Out
• WR Andrel Anthony – Out
• DB Gentry Williams – Out
• DB Kendel Dolby – Out
• OL Geirean Hatchett – Out
• OL Jacob Sexton – Out
• OL Jake Taylor – Out
• RB Jovantae Barnes – Questionable
• WR Jalil Farooq – Questionable
• WR Deion Burks – Questionable
• RB Gavin Sawchuk – Questionable
• DL Adepoju Adebawore – Questionable
• OL Joshua Bates – Questionable
• OL Michael Tarquin – Questionable
• DL Ethan Downs – Probable

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Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy apologizes after saying 'most people are weak' when talking about fan criticism

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Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy apologizes after saying 'most people are weak' when talking about fan criticism


Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy posted an apology to social media late Tuesday night for comments he made during his Monday news conference about Oklahoma State fans who have been critical of the way the season has unfolded.

“I apologize to those who my comments during Monday’s media call offended,” the longtime Oklahoma State coach said. “My intent was not to offend any of our fans who have supported us and this program through the years.”

Oklahoma State is 3-6 and 0-6 in the Big 12 a season after making it to the Big 12 championship game. After starting the season with three straight non-conference wins, the Cowboys are in a tailspin. Four of the six losses have been by double digits.

The team’s performance amidst its losing streak was a prominent theme in Monday’s news conference. And after he was asked about fan criticism earlier in the availability, the topic came up again. Gundy said that “most people are weak” when things don’t go well and that those people then find someone to point the finger at.

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He then went on from there.

“This place has had tremendous success for 18-and-a-half years, or 19, I can’t do the math real good,” Gundy said. “And so, unfortunately, in life, most people are weak and as soon as things start to not go as good as they thought, they fall apart and they panic. And then they want to point the finger and blame other people. You see it happening in everyday life. People do it all the time. That’s why I refuse to watch the TV and watch the news because I get tired of people complaining and b****ing about this and that versus just doing something about it and trying to figure out a way and make it better.

“And that’s what happens in college athletics, and as [a reporter who asked a question earlier in the news conference] said, she’s exactly right. It’s just on the bigger stage where people can voice their opinion. And in most cases, the people who are negative and voicing their opinion are the same ones that can’t pay their own bills. They’re not taking care of themselves. They’re not taking care of their own family. They’re not taking care of their own job but they have an obligation to speak out and complain about others because it makes them feel better. But then in the end when they go to bed at night, they’re the same failure that they were before they said anything negative about anybody else.”

The former Oklahoma State quarterback has been the Cowboys’ head coach since 2005 and the team’s 18-year bowl streak will be snapped if Oklahoma State doesn’t win each of its final three games of the season.

That looks like a very tough task. Oklahoma State plays at TCU on Saturday before games against Texas Tech and No. 20 Colorado to finish the season. If Oklahoma State loses at least one more game, it will be the first time the school hasn’t won at least seven games in a single season since the Cowboys went 4-7 in Gundy’s first season.

Two big reasons for the team’s struggles are the lack of a run game and a porous defense. Ollie Gordon was an All-American in 2023 with 1,732 yards and finished seventh in the Heisman voting. This season, he has 146 carries for 593 yards and the team is averaging just 3.7 yards a carry. The defense, meanwhile, is allowing 6.9 yards per play and the 31.2 points per game OSU is allowing ranks 109th out of 134 teams at the top level of college football.



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Several new House, Senate members win seats in Oklahoma Legislature • Oklahoma Voice

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Several new House, Senate members win seats in Oklahoma Legislature • Oklahoma Voice


OKLAHOMA CITY — Tuesday’s election swept in several new House and Senate members vying for open seats, but also proved to be a good night for incumbents.

Not a single incumbent state House or Senate lawmaker lost Tuesday. 

Incumbent Republican Warren Hamilton of McCurtain easily defeated Democrat challenger Jerry L. Donathan of McAlester in the race for Senate District 7 by a vote of 77% to 23%.

In the race for Senate District 15, Republican Lisa Standridge bested Democrat Elizabeth Foreman by a vote of 62% to 38%. Both are from Norman.

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Standrige is the spouse of Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, who is leaving due to term limits.

The seat for Senate District 21 became open when Tom Dugger, D-Stillwater, decided not to seek another term.

Republican Dr. Randy Grellner of Cushing defeated Democrat Robin Fuxa of Stillwater by a vote of 65% to 35%.

Sen. Dave Rader, R-Tulsa, fended off Democrat Melissa Bryce of Tulsa in the race for Senate District 39. The vote was 56% to 44%.

The seat for Senate District 43 became open when Sen. Jessica Garvin, R-Duncan, lost her reelection bid in the primary.

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Republican Kendal Sacchieri of Blanchard defeated Democrat Sam Graefe of Purcell by a vote of 80.5% to 19.5%.

Senate Minority Leader Kay Floyd, D-Oklahoma City, could not run again for Senate District 46 due to term limits.

Democrat Mark Mann of Oklahoma City beat Republican Charles Barton of Del City and David Pilchman, an independent from Oklahoma City. Mann garnered 60.42% of the vote.

Republican Kelly E. Hines defeated Democrat Erin Brewer in the race for Senate District 47, which became open when Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, termed out. Both are from Edmond. The vote was 53% to 47%.

In the race for House District 4, Rep. Bob Ed Culver, R-Tahlequah, easily defeated Democratic challenger Christopher Wier, also of Tahlequah. The vote was 68% to 32%.

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Rep. Kevin McDugle, R-Broken Arrow, chose not to seek reelection to House District 12.

Republican Mark Chapman of Broken Arrow beat Democrat Crystal LaGrone of Coweta by a vote of 79% to 21%.

Rep. Scott Fetgatter, R-Okmulgee, easily defeated Democratic challenger Rosie Lynch, also of Okmulgee, in the race for House 

District 16. The vote was 71% to 29%.

“I am just thankful the citizens of House District 16 reelected me for a ninth year,” Fetgatter said. “I am excited to get to work and work with new leadership.”

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In the race for House District 26, Rep. Dell Kerbs defeated Democrat Kerri Keck, also of Shawnee, by a vote of 62% to 38%.

Kerbs said he commends anybody who puts their name on the ballot to run for office. 

“It takes a lot of courage and hard work,” Kerbs said.

He said he appreciated the voters of House District 26 for sending him back to the Capitol.

Rep. Trish Ranson, D-Stillwater, beat Republican challenger Andrew Muchmore, also of Stillwater, in the race for House District 34. The vote was 59% to 41%.

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In the race for House District 37, Rep. Ken Luttrell, R-Ponca City, beat independent Carter Rogers of Fairfax by a vote of 79% to 21%.

“It has been an honor and privilege for me to serve this district and listen to the concerns, issues and problems here in rural Oklahoma,” Luttrell said.

He said he will work to see that students have a path to success and stay in Oklahoma. He also wants to work on finding common sense solutions to problems.

“I am honored and humbled by the support,” Luttrell said.

Rep. Denise Crosswhite Hader, R-Yukon, defeated Democrat Mike Bockus of Edmond in the race for House District 41. The vote was 68% to 32%.

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In the race for House District 43, Rep. Jay Steagall, R-Yukon, beat independent Cassie Kinet, also of Yukon, by a vote of 70% to 30%.

Rep. Jacob Rosecrants, D-Norman, bested Republican Alexander W. Torvi of Norman in the race for House District 46. The vote was 54% to 46%.

Polling showed the race was going to be tight, Rosecrants said.

Rosecrants thanked his opponent, who he said ran a good race.

“What this shows, though, is that my constituents don’t like extremism,” Rosecrants said. “They don’t like (State Superintendent) Ryan Walters.”

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Rosecrants said he ran on being accessible and working across the aisle.

Rep. Suzanne Schreiber, D-Tulsa, held on to House District 70. She beat  GOP challenger Bradley Banks, also from Tulsa, by a vote of 56% to 44%.

Republican David B. Hooten of Nichols Hills was unsuccessful in his attempt to unseat House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City, in the race for House District 85. The vote was 61% to 39%.

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