LOS ANGELES - Police are barred from conducting roundups and other actions against the homeless while a federal judge reviews a civil rights lawsuit that claims officers harass Skid Row's indigent.
U.S. District Judge Lourdes Baird on Friday outlined the contents of the temporary restraining order. She said she would issue a written order Monday.
In the meantime, she immediately barred police from stopping homeless people without probable cause and searching them for illegal substances. She also ordered them to quit ticketing the homeless for loitering, jaywalking or blocking sidewalks.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California sued last month on behalf of 23 homeless people and three social service agencies. The ACLU claims the police department is violating the plaintiffs' rights to free speech, freedom of assembly and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.
