Information from King County Sheriff
King County Sheriff Cole-Tindall and King County filed a legal complaint with the United States District Court regarding the City of Burien’s latest anti-camping ordinance passed last week. Burien’s latest homeless ordinance is unique in establishing broad exclusion zones where unhoused persons risk committing a crime just by being present. After completing a legal analysis of the ordinance, the Sheriff’s Office has serious concerns about the constitutionality of the ordinance, especially when the exclusion zones are determined solely at the discretion of the City Manager and can be changed at any time.
The ordinance significantly departs from a previous anti-camping ordinance to essentially ban individuals from engaging in vaguely defined “living space” activities in large parts of the city at any time of day, for any purpose, and brings with it serious questions of the law’s enforceability and constitutionality.
The complaint asks the Court to determine whether the interlocal agreement between Burien and the Sheriff’s Office requires the Sheriff to enforce unconstitutional laws, and to determine if the updated ordinance is in fact unconstitutional. The City of Burien contracts with the King County Sheriff’s Office to provide public safety services as the Burien Police Department.
“The promise I made as a sworn peace officer calls on me to preserve, protect, and defend the constitution. Doing our job for the communities we serve requires legal clarity on the constitutionality of the laws we’re asked to enforce,” said Sheriff Cole-Tindall. “When Burien hastily passed this new ordinance without consulting with us or legal experts, they put the rights of their residents in jeopardy. A ruling from the Court is a crucial step in ensuring that the rights of all people within our jurisdiction are protected and upheld, and our deputies have the guidance they need to do their work.”
The complaint is the first step in resolving the constitutionality of Burien’s unique homeless ordinance. A motion for preliminary injunction addressing the Burien ordinance will be filed later this week for the court to decide in early April.
