Urban camping ban: Denver Police outline enforcement protocol

By Kelsey Whipple Tue., May 22 2012 at 2:54 PM

Categories: Colorado Crimes, Follow That Story, Politics

Continued from page 1

Susan Shepherd.

However, some city officials remain skeptical that the training suggestions will go far enough to prevent citation, which White promises will occur only at the approval of a supervisor during the ban's first year. At the final council meeting regarding the ban, Councilwoman Susan Shepherd told the audience, "You have the power to hold the proponents of this bill accountable. You better watch these suckers like a hawk."

Across six pages, two of which outline the new protocol on a flow chart, the bulletin describes the implications of the crime and the signs of how to identify it. Camping is defined as residing or dwelling with some form of shelter, and those who conduct the act "must indicate more permanence than merely sleeping on a park bench or sunbathing in a park. The officer must look at the totality of the circumstances."

Indicative behaviors could include lighting a campfire, preparing food, using a sleeping bag or tent and a handful of other actions, rather than just lying down in a park. That action, however, is already covered in the city's sit-lie ordinance. If someone is residing in an area without shelter, he or she is not violating the ban. Cooking alone is not a violation, for example, but cooking while lying on a newspaper bed could be.

Once officers identify a violation, they must assess the health needs of the individual who commits it and follow a course of documentation that includes both a verbal and a written warning.

View the full protocol below in the official training bulletin:

DPD Training Camping