Tag: homelessness

Crime and Homelessness, the Debate over Involuntary Civil Commitment

President Trump’s recent executive order, Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets, has reopened a long-standing debate over involuntary civil commitment of adults into psychiatric care facilities. The executive order frames homelessness as a public safety crisis driven primarily by drug addiction and serious mental illness, citing record levels of street homelessness during the previous administration and arguing that existing federal and state programs have failed because they do not address root causes.

It asserts that widespread vagrancy, open drug use, and disorder have made cities unsafe and that shifting homeless individuals into long-term institutional settings through civil commitment is both humane and necessary to restore public order.

Support for President Trump’s approach comes from numerous high-profile cases involving individuals with documented mental illness and extensive criminal histories who were repeatedly released back onto the streets before committing violent crimes.

In California in 2025, Jordan Murray committed a fatal stabbing in Fair Oaks. Murray had previously been diagnosed with a mental disorder and had committed multiple robberies in 2024. He was released through California’s Mental Health Diversion program with no oversight or accountability. Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper later stated that jail would have been the safest option.

In August 2025 in North Carolina, Decarlos Dejuan Brown Jr. fatally stabbed Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee, on a Charlotte light rail train. Brown had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, had a lengthy criminal history, and had previously been denied extended involuntary commitment despite family requests. He was released with no ongoing supervision. The case led to the passage of House Bill 307, known as Iryna’s Law.

In November 2025 in Chicago, Illinois, Lawrence Reed set Bethany MaGee, a 26-year-old woman, on fire on a CTA Blue Line train. Reed had more than 70 prior arrests, multiple felony convictions, and a long history of mental illness. He had violated probation and electronic monitoring conditions before the attack and had been released after earlier violent incidents. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson later stated that Reed was a danger to himself and others and that the system had failed to intervene. Reed was charged with federal terrorism on a mass transportation system and faces life in prison.

These cases share clear patterns. The perpetrators had extensive criminal histories, documented mental illness often combined with substance abuse, and were repeatedly released despite escalating violence. System failures occurred at multiple points, including premature hospital discharges, courts declining involuntary commitment absent proof of immediate dangerousness, ignored probation violations, and ineffective electronic monitoring. The result was a revolving door of arrest, brief hospitalization, release, and reoffense.

The victims were strangers targeted in random public attacks. After each incident, officials acknowledged that the system had failed, that the individuals involved should not have been on the streets, and that the tragedies could have been prevented.

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Fed prosecutor warns more arrests coming after ‘massive’ fraud found in California homeless services: ‘We followed the money’

A federal prosecutor probing corruption in California’s homeless services promised that more arrests are coming after two real estate executives were busted for allegedly bilking taxpayers out of millions.

First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli told The Post a coalition of federal agencies has uncovered wrongdoing on a staggering scale as he blasted Democrats as “colossal failures” for letting corruption fester for years.

“We followed the money and very quickly we uncovered massive amounts of fraud,” Essayli said.

The recent indictments of housing executives Cody Holmes and Steven Taylor were just the tip of the iceberg, as the duo face accusations that they pocketed state funds intended for homeless housing, the prosecutor said.

“That’s just beginning to scratch the surface,” Essayli said. “We have dozens of other investigations ongoing and we expect to bring more charges this year, and perhaps this month.”

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Gavin Newsom Now Vowing to Eradicate Homelessness in California for the 100th Time

Gavin Newsom has been vowing to end homelessness in California for years. It all began way back when he was the mayor of San Francisco. Now he is the governor of California and he is still doing it.

The only thing that has changed in California over the years is the number of homeless people, which just keeps going up.

And of course, the only reason he is doing this now is because he is planning to run for president in 2028, not because he actually cares about the people of California.

The folks at RedState are skeptical:

You know, if California voters had a dollar for every time Gavin Newsom had pledged to eradicate homelessness in his state over the nearly three decades he’s been in elected office, they’d be rich instead of struggling to make ends meet due to the high cost of living and anti-capitalist environment in the Democrat-run Golden State…

The rampant homeless problems there have been well-documented here at RedState and elsewhere, with even prominent Democrat figures in California at various points acknowledging in so many words that the issue exists primarily in big cities run by other Democrats, like Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Predictably, Newsom has in recent months worked to give off the (false) impression that he is the “do something” governor, partly to beef up his purported 2028 bona fides and also to try to combat President Trump’s legitimate criticisms of things like the state’s soft-on-crime policies, which has played a big part in the exodus of residents over the last several years to red states like Texas and Florida.

But homelessness is where Newsom continues to demonstrate that talk is cheap, with the people ending up paying the steep price that the cost of failed leadership brings.

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Newsom’s ‘National Model’ For Homeless Wracked By Fraud

Gov. Gavin Newsom has made reducing the homelessness crisis in California a top priority, saying the scale of the state’s efforts is “unprecedented” and calling for the continued expansion of his signature effort – Project Homekey – that has already cost $3.75 billion. 

But in a state with more than 181,000 homeless individuals, or about one-third of the U.S. total, Homekey has been marred by failures and scandals, including a lack of government oversight and accountability as well as a federal investigation into allegations of fraud in Los Angeles. 

Newsom, who appears to be preparing for a presidential bid in 2028, could make Homekey, which he calls a “national model,” a talking point in his campaign. The state claims the program has created almost 16,000 permanent housing units that will serve over 175,000 people. But since the state doesn’t track outcomes – whether people placed in housing saw their lives improve or if they returned to the streets – the program’s effectiveness is unclear, according to a critical 2024 state auditor’s report. 

“[Our budget] is bloated with homeless spending, a bottomless pit and taxpayer boondoggle that doubles down on failure year after year,” the Republican-turned-Democrat Los Angeles Councilwoman Traci Park said at a meeting in May. “Hundreds of millions of dollars on bridge homes and Homekeys and interim housing sites, and no one can even tell us which ones are operational.”

What is clear is that homelessness in California has skyrocketed in the five years Homekey has been in place, growing by more than 20%, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. That’s an increase of some 36,000 people between 2019 and 2024.

Homekey has been touted by officials as a more cost-effective way to house the homeless. By hiring developers to convert excess motel and hotel rooms and other existing structures into permanent housing, the costs are two to three times lower than building new units, according to the auditor’s report.

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N.Y.: ‘Level 2’ sex offender with 16 prior arrests charged with assaulting 20-year-old NYU student

A 45-year-old homeless man with a lengthy history of sex crimes and violence against women was arrested on Tuesday after a brazen daylight assault on a 20-year-old New York University student just steps from the school’s Manhattan campus.

James Rizzo, 45, obtained his 17th arrest on Tuesday after attacking NYU sophomore student Amelia Lewis, 20.

According to the report, Rizzo quickly approached the NYU sophomore as she walked to class, slapped her forcefully on the buttocks, then struck her head, knocking her to the ground.

“I just really want to emphasize how not OK this is. I am a student at NYU. I should not be scared to be walking the street to go to my 9:30 a.m. class. These people are disgusting, and they should not be able to be walking around the street freely targeting girls and doing this. Cause I heard that this guy did this a month ago,” Lewis said on a TikTok video, where she further discussed the incident with her friends, family, and online followers.

Police say Rizzo is listed on New York’s Sex Offender Registry as a Level 2 offender, with two publicly accessible mugshots. According to the registry, he was convicted in March 2023 for forcing himself onto another person’s intimate parts during an assault that occurred the month before.

“The University is pleased that a suspect has been apprehended in the attack on one of its students that took place Monday morning on a Broadway sidewalk,” NYU spokesperson John Beckman exclaimed. “We take this incident very seriously. We are continuing to offer support to the student, and our Campus Safety Department assisted the victim and worked with the police investigating the incident.”

Following the most recent incident, Rizzo was later arrested and charged with persistent sexual abuse, forcible touching, and assault. 16 prior arrests of his similarly involved sex offenses or sexual misconduct, a law enforcement source reported.

Just days before the attack on the NYU student, Rizzo also purportedly shoved a 68-year-old woman as she walked along Fifth Avenue at around 8:45 p.m. on Thanksgiving. In what investigators described as an unprovoked assault, he reportedly struck her with his elbow so forcefully that she fell to the ground and suffered a deep cut.

He was also charged with burglary in connection with a separate incident in a nearby building, with some reports indicating multiple counts. New York authorities stated that they found Rizzo “in the act” as he was burglarizing an apartment near Washing Square Park on Tuesday. Police connected Rizzo to four other burglaries committed at the same location, all around 1 a.m. on Tuesday.

Victims of the theft include a 28-year-old man who woke up to find his suitcase and backpack gone. Another unnamed man, 29, had three laptops, headphones, and his backpack stolen. Lastly, a 58-year-old woman had $3,150 in items taken, police added.

“I just feel very lucky,” the unidentified woman attacked on Thanksgiving said on Wednesday. “[I’m] very lucky that he didn’t have a weapon or that it didn’t happen in the subway station and throw me on the tracks.”

In addition to the burglary charges, police have since announced that he faces assault counts for both attacks, as well as sexual abuse and forcible touching stemming from the assault on Lewis.

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Woke Portland Politician Who Demanded “Unhoused Neighbors” Be Given a Place to Sleep Has Home Torched by Homeless Person

A Portland Democrat who once called for homeless individuals to be given housing suffered an ironic and cruel twist of fate last week.

As The Oregonian reported, 51-year-old homeless man Vashon Locust was arrested on Tuesday after starting a fire that torched Portland City Councilor Candace Avalos’ townhome and car.

He faces charges of reckless burning, second-degree mischief, and trespassing. These are all misdemeanors.

According to a police affidavit obtained by the paper, Locust snuck into a shed near Avalos’ home on October 26 and attempted to use an electric outlet.

When that failed, he set a fire to stay warm, but he later claimed that it got out of control and tried to put it out.

“He shared that it was very cold that night and his clothing was wet,” the affidavit reads. “Locust attempted to extinguish the fire with his foot.”

Locust then fled to a nearby church.

On October 28, Locust allegedly returned to the scene of the crime to inspect the remains.

Avalos and her cat managed to escape the incident unharmed. She claimed afterward that she was targeted for her political beliefs.

Whatever the cause, this didn’t happen in a vacuum,” she wrote. “In our current national context, it’s hard not to connect this moment to everything happening around us — the threats, the division, the way public service sometimes puts a target on your back.”

The Daily Mail notes that Avalos has long been an apologist for Portland’s homeless population.

She even wrote a column in 2021 titled: “Our unhoused neighbors deserve a safe and clean place to sleep.”

Locust has been arrested more than 50 times for various felony and misdemeanor charges since 2006, according to court records obtained by The Oregonian.

His most recent arrest occurred in February. In this incident, a woman in North Portland reported that Locust would not leave her property and chased her while waving around a stick.

The Oregonian notes that Locust has not been arraigned on the reckless burning charge at this point, and no attorney has been assigned to his case.

He remains in jail until his first court appearance.

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Hawaii Has The Highest Homelessness Rate In America, Mississippi The Lowest

There are around 772,000 homeless Americans (nearly 230 for ever 100,000 Americans), according to the last time a point-in-count assessment was done in 2024.

In this visualization, Visual Capitalist’s Pallavi Rao, take a look at the highest homelessness rates by state, measured per 100,000 residents.

The data for this visualization comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, paired with 2024 population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

⚠️ Caveats: Point-in-time counts were conducted in January, 2024 by local Continuums of Care (CoCs), with latitude in methodology. They risk undercounting unsheltered populations, people couch‑surfing, or those avoiding contact.

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Study Reveals Taxpayer Funds Meant to End Homelessness Are Being Used to Fund the Radical Left’s Agenda

A new study has exposed waste and abuse in the industry that is meant to ‘end’ homelessness. It revealed that taxpayer dollars that have been earmarked for this problem have been funneled to radical left wing causes for political reasons.

It actually makes perfect sense. There are lots of people who make a ton of money fighting homelessness. Why would they want the problem to be solved? That would mean an end to their industry.

This is a reminder that progressives do not actually care about the homeless. They see them as a means to an end. A way to fund their preferred political causes.

FOX News reports:

A new study just exposed the corruption behind America’s homelessness crisis

A groundbreaking investigation, “Infiltrated” – backed by more than 50 pages of documentation from the Capital Research Center in cooperation with Discovery Institute – pulls back the curtain on a vast system of corruption. It reveals how billions in taxpayer funds intended to lift people out of homelessness have instead bankrolled radical activism and anti-American political agendas, betraying both the taxpayers who fund it and the homeless they were meant to help…

It exposes how radical networks have quietly embedded themselves within leading homelessness nonprofits, sharing infrastructure, donors and ideology.

What began as a movement rooted in compassion has metastasized into what can only be described as a Homelessness Industrial Complex – a sprawling web of nonprofits, bureaucrats and activists feeding off the very crisis they claim to solve.

They’ve built an empire of corruption draped in “evidence-based” slogans that shield politics, protect paychecks and betray the vulnerable.

The report lays it bare: these networks posture as defenders of America’s homeless, yet in truth, they have become their greatest exploiters, dependent on failure to sustain power.

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New Report Exposes Billions in Funding for the ‘Homeless Industrial Complex’

Americans spend billions of dollars to combat homelessness, through donations and taxpayer funding, but the “Homeless Industrial Complex” uses this money for political activism that actually demonizes the policies more likely to solve the crisis, according to a new report.

“Fringe groups in the Homeless Industrial Complex like to characterize homelessness as a symptom of societal injustices, such as systemic racism, police violence, or capitalism,” Scott Walter, president of the Capital Research Center, which released the report, told The Daily Signal in a statement Tuesday. “Anyone who disagrees with their tried-and-not-true policy recommendations is called uncompassionate or greedy.”

The report, “Infiltrated: The Ideological Capture of Homelessness Advocacy,” focuses on the 759 organizations that filed amicus briefs in the Supreme Court case Grants Pass v. Johnson (2024), arguing that laws against camping on the sidewalk violate the Eighth Amendment prohibition on “cruel and unusual punishment.” The Supreme Court disagreed, but the nonprofit support for this claim illustrates how organizations founded to help solve the homelessness crisis engage in activism that arguably exacerbates it.

The Capital Research Center report finds that the nonprofits collectively have $9.1 billion in total revenues and received at least $2.9 billion in government grants (32% of their revenues), according to IRS filings.

Attacking Trump and Conservatives

The Southern Poverty Law Center, a left-wing nonprofit that puts mainstream conservative and Christian groups on a “hate map” alongside the Ku Klux Klan and has an endowment of more than $700 million, was the second-largest nonprofit to sign an amicus brief in the Grants Pass case.

The SPLC’s involvement “illustrates the disconnect between those charities that provide genuine services to the needy, and those that use their resources to advance a left-wing ideological agenda,” Walter said.

“When President [Donald] Trump signed a series of commonsensical executive orders in 2025 to protect public safety and address the root causes of homelessness, the SPLC and other allied groups accused him of human rights violations,” he noted.

Trump’s order “Ending Crime and Disorder on American Streets” notes that America hit a grim milestone when 274,224 people lived on the streets on a single night in January 2024, and that most of the homeless “are addicted to drugs, have a mental health condition, or both.” His order directs the federal government to enforce bans on open illicit drug use and on urban camping and shifting the homeless into “long-term institutional settings for humane treatment.”

In response, SPLC Deputy Legal Director Kirsten Anderson accused Trump of “resurrecting unlawful and outdated approaches to housing that are rooted in racist stereotypes and bias against people with disabilities.”

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New Report: How Extremists Infiltrated Homelessness Advocacy in America

Today, the Capital Research Center (CRC) released a new report in cooperation with Discovery Institute exploring how extremist ideological movements are exploiting America’s homelessness crisis, which can include hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people on any given night.

Using financial data, legal records, and original research, the report uncovers a vast network of homelessness advocates that spend billions in taxpayer dollars and philanthropic grants on everything but obvious solutions. The report demonstrates that counterproductive policies have been used for years which do not solve the homelessness problem, but rather exacerbate common root causes of homelessness, including mental health challenges and substance abuse.

The key findings of the report expose the groups that have co-opted the homelessness issue in order to advance their own policy agenda, which, if left unchecked, will result in radical transformations for the entire nation. Groups aligned with radical — and even extremist — worldviews, ranging from anti-police and anti-capitalist movements to groups that express support for foreign terrorist organizations. They include, among others:

  • Western Regional Advocacy Project: The Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP), a 501(c)(3), has received support from Tides-affiliated entities and has coordinated anti-sweep campaigns across cities, tying housing to anti-capitalist critiques in publications like Street Spirit, which labels U.S. governance “neoliberal fascism.” In fact, the nonprofit glorifies violence targeting law enforcement and is a state-level endorser of the Housing Justice platform.
  • Autonomous Tenants Union Network (ATUN): The group believes that “overthrowing capitalism” is required for solving the country’s homelessness problem. Its website states: “We fight for a world without landlords and without rent. We fight to build tenant power in order to end the immiseration of the poor and working classes that housing represents under capitalism and to contribute to the struggle to end capitalism itself.”
  • Right to the City Alliance: This 501(c)(3) nonprofit, known for its protests through the national Homes for All campaign, has engaged in joint endorsement of pro-Hamas 501(c)(3) nonprofits including the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) and the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance that declared, “From Palestine to Mexico, all borders and militarized violence have got to go!”

These are a few examples of actors exploiting structural vulnerabilities in the nonprofit sector — including lax oversight, complex funding channels, and even the legal system — to advance ideas that are not merely unorthodox, but deeply destabilizing for our country.

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