NCJ Number
167780
Date Published
1997
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This chapter discusses the collaborative approach between law enforcement and the Central Arizona Shelter Services in Phoenix.
Abstract
The Central Arizona Shelter Services (CASS) was created in 1984 to operate a permanent downtown Phoenix shelter for the homeless and help them find their way permanently off the street. Those living at CASS must be actively searching for a way off the street. Those able to work must be looking for work and the mentally ill and physically disabled must be doing something for themselves or they will be asked to leave. Calls for police assistance usually involve homeless people living on the street, not in the shelter. Police officers who patrol the area around the CASS shelter have developed a number of tools to help them in their work: (1) authority to arrest trespassers, after one or two warnings; (2) bicycles, to come quickly upon people such as drug dealers, and to chase suspected lawbreakers; (3) good relationships with other city agencies; and (4) neighborhood associations. Protecting residents, business owners, property, and the vulnerable homeless people, while jailing the bad guys, makes the police officers' job stressful. Yet police personnel vie for the homeless beat assignment. It is never boring, there is always a lot of activity, and it is a satisfying job, particularly when they are able to help someone in need. Notes