Case Challenging Sweeps of Homeless Encampments Survives Motion to Dismiss
Federal judge denies City of Miami’s motion to dismiss in case challenging sweeps of homeless encampments
Dec. 20, 2022 - When U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom denied the City of Miami’s motion to dismiss in Cooper-Levy v. City of Miami Dec. 6, Southern Legal Counsel and co-counsel crossed the first major hurdle in their federal lawsuit against the city over its practice of seizing and destroying homeless people's property.
Southern Legal Counsel, Legal Services of Greater Miami, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida, and ACLU of Florida Greater Miami Chapter filed the lawsuit in June on behalf of four Miami residents whose belongings were discarded during the city’s sudden sweeps of encampments where they were living.
"This is not the first time the City of Miami has been sued for allegedly violating the Fourth Amendment rights of homeless individuals,” the motion states, referring to the 1992 case of Michael A. Pottinger, which gave rise to a consent decree that prohibited “the arrest of the homeless for being homeless and the seizure of their property.”
After the Pottinger Agreement was terminated in 2019, the city once again began conducting sweeps without sufficient notice and in a manner that prevents encampment residents from securing their personal property to avoid destruction, which is a violation of the plaintiffs’ constitutional right to be free from unreasonable seizures and their right to due process.
In its motion to dismiss, the city claimed that the plaintiffs could only cite isolated incidents, not a widespread and ongoing practice.
“Although the City seeks to narrow the Complaint’s allegations in arguing that they are insufficient to meet the requirement that a custom or practice be persistent and widespread, the Court finds the allegations to be sufficient. The specific sweeps alleged are separated in time by several months and they occurred at different geographical locations,” the order states.
SLC Executive Director Jodi Siegel said that with the denial of the motion dismiss, the legal team is moving full steam ahead in preparation for trial.
“This is an important case given the historic nature of the Pottinger Agreement and the clear indication that with its termination the City of Miami would simply turn back the clock to the inhumane practices of the early ‘90s instead of continuing to respect the principles of the agreement,” Siegel said. “And it will be important to maintain the precedent that case set, which is why SLC and the other organizations are working hand-in-hand to achieve victory, not just for these plaintiffs but also for the preservation of everyone’s rights under the U.S. Constitution.”