From Voice of San Diego:
When 22-year-old Alexis Leftridge became homeless in downtown San Diego, she was thrust into a constant battle.
Police cited or arrested Leftridge, a mother of a 3-month-old son, on at least 15 separate occasions over the past two years.
Her crimes? Most often, blocking the sidewalk with the tent she set up in East Village. Several citations and three jail stays later, Leftridge has grappled with warrants and orders barring her from the downtown blocks that are home to a cluster of homeless service providers. One of those nonprofits is now trying to help Leftridge and her son find a permanent home.
“They’re spending money on putting us in jail instead of spending money on putting us into programs or housing that will help us get off the street,” said Leftridge, who spent multiple nights in jail while she was pregnant. She considered her time there less chaotic than her experience on 16th Street.
Police citations and interactions have especially soared in downtown San Diego, where a business group’s most recent count tallied more than 1,200 living on the streets in those neighborhoods alone.
There, chaos and confusion are palpable. Homeless people pack some downtown blocks with their tents, tarps and shopping carts. In some cases, their camps even extend onto the street. By day, many leave their belongings on the sidewalk and head to parks, the library or elsewhere. Other blocks are mostly dormant.
