A 52-year-old homeless man was arrested in Santa Monica on Friday, Dec. 26, after being found sleeping next to a property where he had been told to stay away from.
Officers of the Santa Monica Police Department Homeless Liaison Unit were checking the Downtown Santa Monica Business District at 4:07 am with a focus on livability issues in the area when they chanced upon a subject who was sleeping behind a planter at 1248 Fifth Street.
This property had a letter of trespass authorization on file with the department due to chronic cases of trespass in the past.
The officers also noticed that there was a swathe of trash in the area that included empty cups and cigarette butts.
There was also a strong smell of urine in the area.
The officers looked at the individual who was sleeping at the location and recognized this man from previous encounters when he had been told to stay away from the property.
The officers had given the man information pertaining to the whereabouts and protocol of numerous shelters in the area but the man had told the officers that he was not interested in going to any of them.
This homeless man was arrested for trespass and an outstanding warrant. Bail was set at $3,500.
Editor’s Note: These reports are part of a regular police coverage series entitled “Alert Police Blotter” (APB), which injects some minor editorial into certain police activities in Santa Monica. Not all of The Mirror’s coverage of incidents involving police are portrayed in this manner. More serious crimes and police-related activities are regularly reported without editorial in the pages of the Santa Monica Mirror and its website, smmirror.com.
