Mike, who goes by "Wizard" in his community, fell into difficult times after his wife passed away in 2020. He'd been camping out by the railroad tracks near the In-N-Out on 15th Street and Martin Luther King Jr Way for a few days. He said he believes that stricter penalties for public camping will lead to increased tension between police and unhoused residents. "All they do is harass us, take our stuff," the 57-year-old unhoused resident said, describing his previous experiences with city police.
District 6 Council member Fue Xiong cast the sole dissenting vote. "I disagree with an ordinance that, although we're not punishing status, we are doing that because we know who is going to be camping in the parks," Xiong told the Merced Sun-Star, describing how the ordinance was approved to target behavior, not people.
"I gotta say, this ordinance moved a lot and reflects very diverse viewpoints up here, but I think it's the consensus," District 4 Council member Shane Smith said after the majority of the council approved the ordinance for a second reading.
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