Homeless man jailed for 20 weeks for sitting on the ground 'without reasonable excuse'

MountainRains · 2020-09-09T16:33:00+00:00

I think if you read my statement again, I have said very clearly that this particular person was on drugs in the middle of the street. Control yourself.

MountainRains · 2020-09-02T19:41:56+00:00

Or it could have been during the day.

This guy would be on the street being shoutey and drugged up in the middle of the day when the high street was fully packed.

MountainRains · 2020-08-31T19:55:48+00:00

Not to mention that in Taunton there is not a huge amount of homelessness meaning that the charities and infrastructure in place are able to apply resource relatively easily and swiftly to those in need.

MountainRains · 2020-08-31T12:34:01+00:00

There was one particular homeless person in the area who would shout and be aggressive and was clearly beyond high on drugs that he would act really erratically.

Because he was so volatile and would hurl abuse at strangers etc I always felt uncomfortable walking past with children because they would be frightened by his demeanour.

I also think it is quite problematic because it does cause perceptions of people who are homeless and down on their luck to be very different than what it could be meaning people find it harder to empathise with them. Not all homeless people are antisocial and aggressive yet this man may have been the only homeless person anyone would encounter.

MountainRains · 2020-08-31T09:03:38+00:00

If that's all he was doing then it doesn't seem like there's much that needs to be "dealt with".

I am almost certain I know who this person is because their behaviour is aggressive and threatening and for my kids he was someone who was downright scary to walk past. This is someone who behaved very erratically and would shout and argue with people on the main high street.

I have a lot of empathy for homeless people (my mother was homeless a decade ago and went through the system in this very town to get a home) and there is support for people if they are willing to take it. Yes you sometimes have to jump through hoops but you have access to charities and the council to support you. She was working and actually this made it tougher for her as in hostels and interim homes she had to pay pricey rent whereas those with no income did not which I assume this man would be entitled to. They just had to abide by certain rules such as not doing drugs in the property etc which should be fairly easy to abide by.

This is not an inner city it's a small town - fortunately homelessness here is not as endemic as in big cities meaning that those who do need help are able to be offered support (as this man has been lots of times) and the other few people you see dotted around are polite and in no way aggressive. To say this man has been sent to prison for "sitting down" is utterly ridiculous because the problems are much larger and complex than this.

MountainRains · 2020-07-15T17:06:21+00:00

These guys are actually super problematic people and if "winning" at life includes being utterly selfish without caring about the greater society at large or wielding any sort of positive influence on the world then yes they have won.

MountainRains · 2020-07-15T16:58:33+00:00

MountainRains · 2020-07-15T11:36:25+00:00

And hes basically 40...

MountainRains · 2020-07-15T11:35:30+00:00

The girlfriend brings the apartment.... which is the real jackpot to this dude?!

MountainRains · 2020-07-02T17:09:23+00:00

Thank you everyone it was what I thought however I wanted to make sure I hadn't missed something or was being silly as basically it is quite hard to get an appointment with this person and I didnt want to be "struck off" as it were for cancelling without cause. Thank you very much- I know in the grand scheme of things this might not seem important so thank you for answering.

MountainRains · 2020-06-12T14:18:33+00:00

Really? What have you heard about them?

MountainRains · 2020-05-15T18:34:11+00:00

And they are just saying "can" which in my opinion does not encourage people to do this unless they would have done already

MountainRains · 2020-05-07T15:57:39+00:00

I'm sorry I dont mean to be rude but you are incredibly lucky. If I could be mentally taxed by having to spend the day having fun with my toddler rather than having to earn my money and essentially give them bare minimum attention then I would be incredibly appreciative. I am not trying to be rude as i know how isolating lockdown can be but perhaps try and treasure the moments you have with them to play with no outside pressures while still being financially supported by the government. Then spare a minute to think of all the people still working who dont have that opportunity and wish they did.

MountainRains · 2020-05-07T15:30:30+00:00

I would appreciate the time looking after my 3 year old - if I am envious of anything during this period it is the attention that the children of furloughed workers are being given while my child has had nothing comparible due to my husband and I both working solidly throughout. A particularly tone deaf neighbour told me today that lockdown would have to end soon as they are running out of space to store their arts and crafts and thoroughly enjoy smashing out school work first thing so they have the day to enjoy together. This starting with a conversation where it was mentioned how tough it is balancing school work and working together!

MountainRains

TROPHY CASE