Why CARE Court is the right move

Finally some action from our state government on homelessness

I haven’t agreed with every move that Gavin Newsom, our Governor here in California has made in the last several years. I felt that some of the actions he took on COVID were too long in time and excessive in scope, and I also have been frustrated at times by the lack of initiative on the issues of crime and homelessness that have been of importance to our state, especially recently.

Finally though we are seeing some action from our state leadership- not just funding, which has been available for years but misused and ultimately hasn’t been fruitful in tackling the problems- but ideas that have the potential, once they go into effect, to really make a positive difference.

Governor Newsom recently signed the CARE Act, a new state law which creates an infrastructure through which those people who are living on the streets and are resistant to voluntary care/housing can be attended to through civil as opposed to criminal court proceedings.

The new program will begin this December in 8 California counties, including Los Angeles, and will hopefully begin to stem the tide in terms of the amount of homeless individuals we see every day who are dealing with mental health issues, sometimes even turning violent which obviously dovetails in with the crime issue.

Criminal proceedings have never been the way to handle these cases, and in that way I totally agree with those on the more “progressive” end of the political spectrum. I’m a progressive myself, and I have always believed that we should treat the unhoused, regardless of their mental health status, with care and compassion.

But we also cannot allow the status quo to continue, and that is what some on the so-called “left” seem to be advocating for these days, saying that the humane way to go is to let the tent cities and encampments we see more than ever (and growing at an alarming rate, by the way) continue.

I don’t believe that is the liberal or humane approach. I think what Governor Newsom is doing with this new CARE court system makes sense, and even if there are little kinks that need to be smoothed out over time, at least we finally have a potential solution and a leader who is offering tangible possibilities of progress instead of left-wing ideological purity and performative word salad that doesn’t actually solve anything.

I’ve also been happy to see Governor Newsom’s action on a series of other fronts, including the vetoing of a bill in the state legislature that would have allowed government-sanctioned injection sites for drugs in our cities. It’s been these little actions in the past of government allowing wild, unruly behavior in our neighborhoods that leads to a general feeling of unease and chaos, which is how many residents of California feel these days, and I’m grateful the Governor is finally putting his foot down.

Here in West Hollywood we’ve seen so many small businesses close down as of late due to the “Purge” like atmosphere where anything goes and people think they can get away with whatever they want to do. As of today Los Angeles has instituted a “zero bail” policy which, though originally well intentioned, has the potential to create even more crime and instability. I’m heartened that 12 cities in L.A. County have sued to try to stop this policy from being implemented, and I urge West Hollywood to join them.

We need more solutions based in common sense and results-focused, non-ideological Democrats in office who will help us implement them. I’m tired of certain members of our City Council here in WeHo and in other jurisdictions throughout the state and country who put ideology first instead of the safety and well-being of their citizens. Governor Newsom is following the right path and I hope more of our elected officials will join him.