“Please take me away Far from this place Leaving me here Take me away To the furthest star in the sky Take me away To the deepest cave in the night Take me away Voices of love, here am I In this sad, sad world of fear” –Genesis, In Limbo

The ACLU of Southern California has dropped a dime on three shelters in Orange County: The Courtyard in Santa Ana, La Mesa in Anaheim, and Bridges at Kraemer Place in Anaheim. Utzman v. Orange County, the suit brought by the ACLU against these three facilities and their parent companies, was originally filed in December 2020 but was held up by various legal legerdemain until February 2024. The suit specifically names Orange County, the City of Anaheim, the Illumination Foundation (who operate La Mesa), Midnight Mission (The Courtyard), Mercy House (Bridges), and Protection America.

The three facilities have these complaints in common:

1) The Orange County-imposed “lock-in/shut-out” policy prevents shelter residents from taking public transportation or self-powered transport (e.g., bicycles, skateboards, walking) to and from the shelter. In other words, you have to leave and return in a motorized vehicle (e.g., car/taxi). There are not enough words to stress how crucial this point is. Very few shelter residents can afford to hire an Uber or Yellow Cab on a daily basis, and equally, few are fortunate enough to have a motor vehicle. This prevents many shelter residents from seeking and maintaining gainful employment, even if the job is only blocks from the shelter and/or easily reached by foot or bus. Most of the plaintiffs in the ACLU suit lost jobs and wages due to this inane policy, which is ostensibly supposed to appease the shelters’ business neighbors (one of which is a strip club). Until recently (April 2024), Yellow Cab and Veyo did offer non-emergency transport to jobs, doctor’s appointments, and errands such as grocery shopping, but both companies have discontinued that service.

2) Sanitary conditions that leave the residents exposed to bedbugs, rats, and other vermin, as well as bacteria and viruses that negatively impact shelter residents’ health;

3) Inadequate toilet and showering facilities, with toilets and urinals often down for repairs, no access to hot water, and shower facilities that were growth mediums for mold and mildew and various forms of bacteria (E. coli, H. pylori, etc.).

Additionally, the Courtyard and La Mesa facilities were cited for numerous employees’ repeated sexual harassment of residents, involving unwarranted strip searches of women, body searches in which women residents were fondled and groped by male and female staff members, and subjected to unwanted sexual suggestions. This only occurred to women residents and only at the Courtyard and La Mesa facilities, according to the specifics laid out in the writ. When these women complained, they were threatened with eviction from the shelter or told, in blunt, earthy words, “If you don’t like it, you can leave.”

I’m unfamiliar with the Courtyard or La Mesa conditions, so I can’t speak to those issues. My experience with Mercy House post-dates the filing of the ACLU suit, so I can’t address specifics there. What I can do is relate my own experiences, the complaints I’ve filed, and what action, if any, was taken. But first, let’s take a look at Mercy House’s mission statement, as it appears on their website:

“In 1988, Father Jerome T. Karcher met a young man who was living on the streets in an abandoned garage. He felt so moved by the young man’s situation that he sought out a response to the local concern of homelessness. This was when he began Mercy House.

“Mercy House provides dignified housing and comprehensive supportive services to a wide variety of homeless subpopulations including, but not limited to, adult men and women, families, mothers, and their children, veterans, chronically homeless individuals, persons living with HIV/AIDS, individuals overcoming substance addictions, and those who are both physically and/or mentally disabled.

“Mercy House is grounded in the belief that every person is born with inherent dignity and that homelessness is an affront to that dignity. Our goal is simple: To end the cycle of homelessness of those who enter our system of care.”

It is a laudable goal, indeed. So, how is Mercy House doing in achieving it? Based on my experience and anecdotal accounts from other homeless persons I’ve spoken with over the past two years, I’d say somewhere between a C and C-. Even though significant improvements have been made since 2020, Mercy House must apply itself.

More to come in the next issue.