The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that a local ordinance to bar anyone without a permanent residency from sleeping outside does not amount to “cruel and unusual” punishment under the Eighth Amendment.
The 6-3 opinion authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch reversed an appeals court ruling that found an outdoor camping ban in Grants Pass, Oregon to be unconstitutional.
“Homelessness is complex. Its causes are many. So may be the public policy responses required to address it,” Gorsuch wrote. “At bottom, the question this case presents is whether the Eighth Amendment grants federal judges primary responsibility for assessing those causes and devising those responses. It does not.”
The case was the biggest test for the high court on the complicated and multifaceted issue of homeless rights in more than 40 years.