By Jacqueline Raithel and Stephanie Rice

April 27, 2009

Homeless people in the City of Richmond are diverse from race to age to language, but they have one thing in common: they’ve met HOPE.

The Homeless Outreach Partnership Enforcement unit within the Richmond City Police Department was started in December 2007 by Rodney Monroe, chief of police until November 2008. Monroe noticed that there was not a connection between police and homeless in Richmond, so he got creative and started a temporary HOPE unit, said Sgt. Shane Waite, supervisor for HOPE. Current Police Chief Bryan Norwood made the unit permanent.

The unit, composed of Waite, Officer SoniaAustin-Moore, Officer Kuti, Officer McHugh and Victor Little, a social worker, build relationships with homeless people and connect with services so that they can get off the street. The unit also works with local citizens and businesses that have complaints or concerns related to homelessness.

“Homeless services are a big puzzle,” Waite said, because there are so many and each has a different schedule for services and different requirements.

Waite called homelessness a vicious cycle, because people who have been homeless usually have bad credit so they cannot get approved for a lease for permanent housing. If they cannot find a place to stay other than the streets, it is difficult for them to escape their addictions. If they are alcoholics or drug users, they cannot keep a steady job to pay for a place to stay and establish their credit.

The HOPE unit tries to build a rapportand trust with homeless, Waite said, and they have so far been successful.  

“We keep reaching out to them day by day by day,” he said.

The officers try to get people into programs such as the Conrad Center Freedom House, which feeds homeless people breakfast and dinner everyday.

Conrad is the first step, Austin-Moore said, then its housing programs, alcohol or drug programs, even work programs. The goal is to eventually get them into permanent housing.

“We try to deal with the social work first [as opposed to policing]” Little said. “We can try to circumvent the system if we need to. Obviously, we can’t do it every time though. We’re real problem solvers though.”  

A few months ago, a former addict and homeless man that HOPE officers had been working with was turned down for a lease on an apartment. The officers “went to bat for him,” his lease was approved and Waite was recently told by the landlord that he is a model citizen.

The officers also work with CARITAS, First Baptist Church, the Salvation Army, the Daily Planet and other services for homeless.

The officers spend Monday through Friday riding through Richmond and talking to “the regulars,” people who have been homeless for a while. They check up on them to see if they are doing well and follow up on any appointments or arrangements that were made beforehand.

Most homeless people in Richmond hang out in Monroe Park and the Broad St. Corridor. Several services for homeless people such as Homeward, the Daily Planet and churches are on Broad St. and there are several bus stops, where it is not illegal to sit for several hours. They also sit outside gas stations, CVS and 7-11, but some are on a “banned” list from the CVS near Broad St. and Boulevard.

There were problems in the past with people sitting outside the Daily Planet all day, Waite said. Some were doing drugs and drinking, saying they had an appointment, but the officers made people leave and have kept them from loitering after officials from the Daily Plant complained.

Some homeless give the officers information about who is stealing and getting in trouble with other homeless.

“Sometimes they give us good information and sometimes they’re just a pain,” Austin-Moore said, “But, I’m not gonna­­ lie, I’ll go back to them every time – it’s like candy.”

Austin-Moore is relatively new to the unit so some of the homeless people will not talk to her, she said.

“One said he’d talk to me cause I’m a girl,” Austin-Moore said with a laugh. “I’ll play that.”

The officers also arrest people for larceny, trespassing and most often being drunk in public. They can give people tickets for misdemeanors such as panhandling, but the tickets do not do much, Waite said. If a homeless person gets a ticket, they usually cannot pay it and the only thing it affects is their ability to get a driver’s license in Virginia.

Some of “the regulars” include Mister Mitchell who has lived at the end of Carlton St. in a tarp tent for seven years, J.R. “The Governor” who sits on a bus stop bench in front of 7-Eleven on Boulevard and Broad St. and the many people who sit in Monroe Park until they are not allowed to be there after dark.

“If you push them, it helps them get going,” Waite said, which is what happened to another “regular,” Joe.

Joe was an alcoholic who spent most of his time in Oregon Hill. After the HOPE officers met him, they got him into a rehabilitation program. He failed out a few times, but eventually made it through and has been sober for over a year. He graduates from his rehab program soon and is looking for yard work.

Some homeless people just move from place to place within the city. The officers will find their encampment and tell them to move, so they move a few blocks down.

There people who have not responded to the officers with enthusiasm. Philip is an alcoholic who has been homeless for several years. The officers see him around the city constantly and he tells them the same story every time, Waite said. He is trying to find work and has a plan but the officers have been able to get him in any programs so far.

The officers also meet travelers, or homeless people who do not stay in one city or state, but go from place to place with backpacks and sometimes their dogs. Most of the time they are in their 20s, have facial piercings and tattoos, Waite and Austin-Moore said. They also tend to be more hesitant to trust the officers and do not like to cooperate with them.

Before the HOPE unit was started, most police officers thought all homeless were like the travelers including Waite, he said. They were frustrated with homeless people and had no patience or time for them.

Now the HOPE officers work to build relationships with the homeless and they seem to respect them for that.

Robin, an alcoholic who panhandles throughout the city and who the officers have been working with, told Waite he was a good man.

“He treats me with respect and integrity,” Robin said.