Professor
01-19-2007, 02:09 PM
Source: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/18/national/main2369793.shtml
NYC Shop Owner Sues Homeless For $1M
NEW YORK, Jan. 18, 2007
(CBS/AP) In a clash of classes on a posh shopping strip, an antiques dealer has filed a $1 million lawsuit against four homeless people, seeking to keep them off the sidewalk in front of his shop.
The lawsuit, filed this week, seeks a court order to keep three men and one woman at least 100 feet away from Karl Kemp & Associates. They are named only as John Doe, Bob Doe, John Smith and Jane Doe.
The suit says the four have obscured window displays and turned off customers at the shop on Manhattan's upscale Madison Avenue. It says they "can often be found sleeping on the sidewalk," "consuming alcoholic beverages from open bottles," and "performing various bodily functions such as urinating and spitting."
Kemp told the New York Post: "You make a wonderful effort to have an attractive window, people come out from the building next door, they don't see him and they trip over him," he said. "It happened twice last August. One lady hurt herself."
Owner Karl Kemp said he resorted to litigation after repeated complaints to police brought no changes, and he said he was concerned about the health of one of the three men.
"Sometimes he’s out there in blizzard conditions, and you and I pay taxes in New York City and some of that is to maintain decent shelters. And he should take advantage of that," Kemp told The New York Times.
But advocates for the homeless saw the lawsuit as hardhearted.
"Until we see to it that every single homeless individual has a place to stay, this is our reality," said Shelly Nortz, a deputy executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless.
"The complaint that they somehow occasionally occupy a space that is also home to Gucci and Chanel doesn't mean that they're breaking any law," she added.
Kemp's lawyer, Allan Schiller, said the homeless men and women were "creating a nuisance" by lingering in front of the shop. He said the suit included a claim for $1 million in damages for legal reasons.
"The fact is, they are creating a nuisance by standing in front of you constantly. You are not my guest. I did not invite you here. And they have attached themselves to my client’s property," Schiller told the Times.
NYC Shop Owner Sues Homeless For $1M
NEW YORK, Jan. 18, 2007
(CBS/AP) In a clash of classes on a posh shopping strip, an antiques dealer has filed a $1 million lawsuit against four homeless people, seeking to keep them off the sidewalk in front of his shop.
The lawsuit, filed this week, seeks a court order to keep three men and one woman at least 100 feet away from Karl Kemp & Associates. They are named only as John Doe, Bob Doe, John Smith and Jane Doe.
The suit says the four have obscured window displays and turned off customers at the shop on Manhattan's upscale Madison Avenue. It says they "can often be found sleeping on the sidewalk," "consuming alcoholic beverages from open bottles," and "performing various bodily functions such as urinating and spitting."
Kemp told the New York Post: "You make a wonderful effort to have an attractive window, people come out from the building next door, they don't see him and they trip over him," he said. "It happened twice last August. One lady hurt herself."
Owner Karl Kemp said he resorted to litigation after repeated complaints to police brought no changes, and he said he was concerned about the health of one of the three men.
"Sometimes he’s out there in blizzard conditions, and you and I pay taxes in New York City and some of that is to maintain decent shelters. And he should take advantage of that," Kemp told The New York Times.
But advocates for the homeless saw the lawsuit as hardhearted.
"Until we see to it that every single homeless individual has a place to stay, this is our reality," said Shelly Nortz, a deputy executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless.
"The complaint that they somehow occasionally occupy a space that is also home to Gucci and Chanel doesn't mean that they're breaking any law," she added.
Kemp's lawyer, Allan Schiller, said the homeless men and women were "creating a nuisance" by lingering in front of the shop. He said the suit included a claim for $1 million in damages for legal reasons.
"The fact is, they are creating a nuisance by standing in front of you constantly. You are not my guest. I did not invite you here. And they have attached themselves to my client’s property," Schiller told the Times.