Police and homeless interaction

As Carson City has grown from fewer than 35,000 people in 1980 to 53,000 today, the law enforcement community has been forced to take on the problem of homelessness.

Gone are the days when a handful of homeless people could blend quietly into daily life. Today hundreds seek shelter along the Carson River, on the sides of roads and in cars in parking lots. The Carson City Sheriff's Department comes across them daily in the parks and on the streets, but there is no single policy for dealing with them.

"It's not an enforcement issue for the sheriff's office; it's more of a helping-hand issue," said Chief Sheriff's Deputy Scott Burau. Officers make sure homeless are not breaking laws or trespassing on private land. When they have medical problems, police steer them toward the hospital.

When they need a place to sleep, police take or refer them to Focus House, the only shelter in town.

"Occasionally we'll make sweeps of the areas where they stay," said Sgt. Kurt Davis, who has spent 21 years as a patrolman. "They'll go down and camp by the river. We try to head it off before it becomes a problem."

Decades ago, the practice was to drive homeless people to the county line and drop them off. Now officers try to find help.

"The guys are getting a lot more proactive than they used to be," Davis said. "They realize that this is something that is not going to be cured with a Band-aid."

Davis, who has seen many homeless over the years, says alcohol and drugs can lead rapidly down the road to homelessness.

"The way I see it, alcohol is a drug that can be habit-forming," he said. "It's a vicious circle. Add in crank (methamphetamine) and the combination just turns off the brain. It shuts off any semblance of pain even when it is supposed to heighten the senses."

When homeless are interviewed on the street and in motels - the most accessible form of low-budget housing - the most common arrests are related to drugs and alcohol, Davis said.

Domestic violence cases are often reported at the motels. During searches of the rooms, drugs are found. For incidents of domestic violence, Carson City ranks third in the state per capita among counties. In 1999, there were 472 domestic violence cases.

Friends In Service Helping has been the only large-scale program police can look to in solving the day-to-day problems of Carson City's homeless. Since FISH was chartered in 1979, it has grown from a one-room operation, handing out food to families in need, to a full fledged shelter and network of homeless services.

Executive Director Monte Fast has navigated the ship across those two decades, expanding services and maintaining FISH's vision.

He is steadfast in the belief that FISH should not be a resource for handouts, but a place where determined people can receive guidance to get their lives back on track - permanently.

"We are the first and primary source for many people," he said. "If people need help or they're hungry, this is the only place."

Because of the high crime rate among the homeless, FISH goes out of its way to keep its facilities crime free.

Nightly residents at the Focus House must undergo criminal background checks through the FBI's national crime database. If they have outstanding warrants or are considered dangerous, they will be denied entry into the home or referred to police.

"That's the safety valve," Fast said. "People are going to get the benefit of shelter and they aren't going to be in there with a bunch of guys on the run from the law."

FISH employees also undergo the same review. The organization has a strict policy of no alcohol and no drugs, enforced with breathalizer and drug testing.

"We are surrounded by drugs," Fast said. "Meth is insidious."

Despite the strength of the economy, most low-wage earners are still only a couple of paychecks away from rock-bottom poverty. And Fast says the prospects of staying on track are difficult. "Often times they are the last ones hired and the first ones fired," he said.

It's a situation that often results in the same people out on the streets, dealing with police and continuing to abuse substances. "It's a cycle," Fast said. "But I don't see the sheriff as part of the problem, I see him as part of the solution."