Ashland Tightens Rules On Homeless Camping

The Ashland City Council has voted to tighten its ban on public camping.
     The Ashland Daily Tidings reports that the move was prompted by the municipal court's dismissal of two citations.

     Currently, a camper can have a citation dismissed if the city
can't prove he or she was living at the site.

     Under the change, a citation would stand up in court if the city
can show the person was taking up space in a way that precludes the
use of the area by the general public.

     Keith Haxton, a homeless man, says the action expected to win
final approval next month punishes poverty and could interfere with
the constitutional right to assemble peacefully.

​Associated Press