“I don’t call this quality of life. I call this cruelty”: Advocates question San Jose’s police unit charged with encampment enforcement

After years of frustration over encampments on public streets, San Jose city leaders finally reached their limit last year.

They made it clear they were tired of the negative impacts and wanted residents to know tent encampments were not an acceptable option when shelter was available, so the city created a special police unit last year to tackle those challenges head-on.

Over the past seven months, police in the new neighborhood quality of life unit have arrested several suspects accused of stealing more than $15,000 worth of tools from a San Martin plumber; taken in 11 others near Little Orchard Street and Monterey Road for outstanding felony and misdemeanor warrants, probation violations and narcotics possession; and aided in the arrest of a homeless man suspected of torching nearly two dozen vehicles throughout the city.

Despite those successes, homeless advocates and even some wrapped up in recent arrests paint a different picture, questioning the city’s narrative, its data and whether the new approach is having the desired impact the city had hoped for.

Advocate Emma Hartung told the city’s neighborhood service committee Thursday that she personally witnessed police making arrests for warrants previously ignored, rifling through belongings, towing vehicles with pets inside, and ticketing homeless residents for trash despite acknowledging an area was clean. She alleged that homeless advocates have even faced the threat of arrest for not leaving an area while trying to assist people.

“One of the residents said, ‘I don’t call this quality of life. I call this cruelty,’” Hartung said. “Is this the best use of our city funds — this team?

San Jose approved a new quality-of-life unit during the budget season last year, along with an initiative pushed by Mayor Matt Mahan that amended the code of conduct for encampments and set the expectation that unhoused residents should accept shelter when available, or face the possibility of arrest. At the time, Mahan argued that the policy struck a balance between compassion and accountability, adding that it could help in petitioning behavioral health courts to mandate treatment if underlying mental health or addiction issues impacted their decision to leave the streets.

Sgt. Steve Aponte, the unit’s supervisor, said his officers received advanced crisis intervention training, similar to that of counselors, before they hit the street.

“These were hand-selected officers, because everybody saw in the command staff something special about these officers, something that could help both provide proactivity, enforcement accountability to people, but also offer a gentle hand and assistance,” Aponte said. “Yes, there are times where enforcement has to happen and there are times where we as officers have to use a stern voice and put handcuffs on people. But, I think at the end of the day, you’ll see that it’s done in a manner that is legal, professional and abiding by all duly made policy.”

Since its deployment, the unit has focused its activities on no-encampment zones, chronic problem areas, and abatement sites.

Capt. Steve Donohue said between October and December, the unit was present for 49 abatements and made 474 contacts with homeless individuals. Those included 323 people exhibiting substance problems and 67 with mental health issues.

Donohue added that while officers offered some form of services 435 times, the acceptance rate was only slightly above 10%. However, some of the data the department cited in a report to the committee is unclear. For example, the number of contacts with homeless individuals could include repeat encounters with the same person. It also lists some statistics in percentage form without providing numerical totals to add context.

A report submitted to the committee also delved somewhat into the unit’s enforcement actions, which Donohue said reflected a “balanced and professional approach.”

Donohue said about half of the violations were misdemeanors and more than a third were municipal code violations, noting that the unit focuses on quality of life issues that involve public nuisance activity and other low-level offenses that significantly impact neighborhoods, waterways and public infrastructure.

“It’s also important to note that about one-third of the enforcement actions were warnings,” Donohue said. “Now, that team is not simply going out and arresting and citing everybody they contact. They’re using discretion, providing warnings, educating individuals on the code of conduct and escalating only when necessary.”

In response to a request from this news organization, the police department said the unit was involved with 320 misdemeanors, 246 municipal code violations, 64 felonies and seven infractions.

However, as was the case last year when Mahan proposed the Responsibility to Shelter initiative, advocates have taken issue with the city’s approach.

In a letter to the committee and each City Council office, the REAL Coalition raised several concerns, noting that the city’s model failed to demonstrate improvements, lacked input from the community and those with lived experience, and that there was a need for greater data transparency and definitions of key terms.

“We urge the committee to carefully consider whether the city’s approach is structured to produce durable encampment management and improvements in homelessness overall — or whether it risks reinforcing a cycle of temporary placements, displacement, and trauma to our unhoused neighbors,” the coalition wrote.

Several advocates and residents also questioned whether police officers were the right people to initiate contact with homeless residents.

Homeless advocate Lori Katcher said the city’s response should include trauma-informed social workers and therapists — people who could listen to their needs — instead of coercing them into something that may not be appropriate. She added that, before implementing its policies, the City Council should see encampment sweeps firsthand and how people are treated.

“I have seen RV shelters crushed with people’s personal documents and IDs inside, leaving them poorer than they already were,” Katcher said. “I have seen RV shelters towed without prior notice, causing emotional and psychological stress and further financial harm. Did you know that when someone’s RV is towed, it costs at minimum $600 to retrieve it? “We are making our people in poverty poorer and we’re not actually helping them out of the situation.”