(The Center Square) – A Washington Court of Appeals judge has rejected a nonprofit’s appeal to a December decision against its lawsuit regarding Spokane Proposition 1 banning camping within a certain distance of playgrounds, parks and school centers.
In its lawsuit, Jewels Helping Hands argued that the proposition, approved by 76% of Spokane voters, went beyond the scope of voter initiative and is reserved to the Spokane City Council.
The organization managed Camp Hope, a large homeless encampment on state land, until it was later dismantled. Under Proposition 1 – which bans camping within 1,000 ft. of certain locations – such a site would not be allowed to operate where it did.
In its Dec. 7 decision, the Court of Appeals concluded that “the initiative here is a classic vagrancy ordinance, which is an exercise of the city’s general police powers.”
The lawsuit initially was able to get an emergency injunction keeping the initiative off the November ballot, but that decision was later reversed.
Representing the proposition’s sponsor is Mark Lamb, a Seattle-based attorney. He told The Center Square that the legal fight was over “the right of the people to have their vote count. We’re extremely pleased that yet another court has rejected the argument that was advanced by Jewel’s Helping Hand…to disenfranchise voters in Spokane.”
Jewels Helping Hand has the next 30 days to appeal its case to the State Supreme Court.
Jewels Helping Hand did not respond to a request for comment.
