MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Police in Morgantown are preparing to enforce the new camping ban in urban areas on Oct. 4.
The ordinance, “1157 Camping on Public Property,” will only allow camping in designated areas that have access to water, sewer, and garbage collection. Violations of the ordinance start with a warning and can be as severe as $500 per day and up to 30 days in jail for repeated violations.
On MetroNews “Talkline,” Chief of Police Eric Powell said they won’t have to make major changes, but officers will receive additional training. But, the department has began an increased enforcement campaign in downtown to address the many reports of open drug use.
“We’ve increased our presence in both uniformed and non-uniformed in the last month or so with the objective of addressing these low-level, street-level drug incidents,” Powell said.
Last year, the department added a full-time social worker that works with Crisis Intervention Teams (CIT) to find alternatives other than an arrest when dealing with the homeless, people suffering from drug addiction and mental health issues. The full-time social worker regularly connects those in need with services and responds in select situations to prevent escalation. In some cases, police and the social worker know the people involved and quickly establish a connection.
“The alternative responses—the connections with social services and networking,” Powell said. “Providing the information and a way for those in need and those with the services to get connected.”
In addition to several annual required training sessions, Powell said some specific opportunities are being made available to help officers on the street learn new ways to intervene in times of crisis.
“We’ve also put in place training opportunities for officers in how they deal with individuals that are dealing with substance abuse problems, houselessness, or mental health issues,” Powell said.
When police investigate an encampment, Powell said they will talk to the residents to learn about their situation and how they might best help. As long as there is cooperation and no dangerous or criminal activity is going on, Powell expects officers to be helpful as part of the enforcement of the ban.
“If they do respond in an affirmative way, we’ll do everything within our power to get them to the shelters and assist them with dismantling their encampment,” Powell said.
Powell stressed the culture within the department is to be helpful to residents while enforcing the law. He said the new ordinance will not change the way they deal with people, but it provides more ways to help the public when dealing with encampments.
“Our emphasis has always been to help people when we can; enforcement is part of what we do, but it’s not at the forefront,” Powell said. “Something we take seriously is the health and well-being of the community.”