The Safer Kentucky Act went into effect in July, with one of the provisions banning street camping. Through open-record requests, 비바카지노 Viva obtained all of the citations handed out so far. Records show between July 19 and Dec. 17, LMPD handed out 70 citations for unlawful or illegal camping, in which at least 10 people have been arrested. Of the 10 people who were arrested, one person was arrested on an outstanding bench warrant, and at least six people had received prior warnings from police before being arrested. The records show a majority of citations were given by Lt. Caleb Stewart.He is the officer who cited a pregnant woman in labor.Last month, LMPD released the body camera footage and public outcry followed. LMPD has since responded, saying, "on two previous occasions, members of The Safe and Healthy Streets Initiative offered the woman resources for shelter which she had declined.""And because she was a frequent flier, right, her physical and medical needs were not prioritized," said Ra'Shann Martin, who is the executive director of the St. John Center, a downtown shelter. "Instead, what was prioritized was the fact that she was sleeping, all right, or camping."She says since the act took effect almost seven months ago, people are more fearful. "There's a greater sense of urgency to access shelter, which is limited," she said. "Every morning here in the shelter, there's a line of people waiting to call the bed line to find out what is available.""What we know works, what we know solves homelessness, is housing," she added. Rep. John Hodgson, who represents part of Jefferson County, was one of the sponsors of the Safer Kentucky Act."Overall, HB5 is working as intended on the primary goal: helping improve public order and safety," he said in a statement. He says a secondary goal is to "nudge" unsheltered people towards shelters and services. "It is not compassionate to leave unsheltered individuals on the streets, spiraling downward and suffering from drug addiction, mental illness, and other social adaptation problems. All judges have the option of diverting cases into rehab rather than the criminal justice system," he said. Martin says she's seen more unhoused people go into hiding as they try to avoid being cited. "We see it every day," she said. "And it's taken so long to actually find the people who are being referred because people are going to live and going to camp in less visible areas.""There are more people who are literally living on the edge of the river. And so that was a fear, right, that we are seeing play out in real-time," she added. "It concerns me that our folks are having to put themselves in more dangerous situations to connect with our clients when we are trying to connect them to these emergency shelter opportunities." Previously, LMPD announced there would be an illegal camping docket, meaning there would be a specific court date assigned for people who are cited and resources and support would be present.LMPD tells us that the docket is expected to start in February.