Police Responses to People Experiencing Homelessness

Abstract

Using open-source (i.e., social media) data collection complemented by in-depth case studies, we present a typology of police responses to homelessness across the United States. We identified eight categories of discretionary police responses to homelessness. For several of our categories, we identified subcategories. We present and define each category in the typology and provide open-source examples for each discretionary response. The majority of responses are steeped in discretion and must be tailored to the local context. This work demonstrates that many police departments are innovative in their responses to people experiencing homelessness. While novel, this research can be used as a foundational resource to help guide law enforcement agencies in responding to people experiencing homelessness. It also lays the groundwork for future evaluation efforts that are needed to determine which police responses to homelessness produce positive outcomes or meet specified goals and which do not.