San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan clarified his stance on the city’s Responsibility to Shelter initiative, opting for a case-by-case evaluation over mandatory arrests for the homeless individuals who refuse shelter. Initially, Mahan proposed trespassing violations for those declining shelter three times. Now, he suggests that situations should be assessed individually and that some individuals may need behavioral health interventions. The city plans to establish a new outreach team to engage with the homeless and potentially refer cases to police after attempts to offer shelter.
"At some point, we have to acknowledge that a small subset of folks on our streets simply are unable or unwilling to accept and benefit from what the city can do, in which case we have to get them into a behavioral health court (or) a county run treatment center."
"To implement the policy, the city could create a new in-house outreach team to build a case file of every homeless person they encounter."
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