This guidance is intended to inform residents—including residents who are unhoused or experiencing homelessness—about their rights and the resources available to them. Please read and share the Q&A below.

Can the police arrest you for being homeless?

No.  A police officer can arrest you without a warrant if the officer has probable cause to believe you have committed a crime. Being unhoused is not a crime, and you cannot be arrested for being homeless.

If you are arrested, it is important to follow the officer’s instructions and not resist arrest, even if you believe your arrest is unlawful.

Can the police force you to leave a homeless encampment where you are living?

Yes. You have a right to be in public spaces like parks and sidewalks if you’re there at allowable times, not violating any laws, and not violating other rules governing use of the public space. But you do not have the legal right to live there, set up a tent or other abode there, or store your property there. 

Can the police arrest you for refusing to leave a homeless encampment?

Yes. You may not refuse a police order to vacate an encampment in a public space because, as the previous answer explains, a police order to vacate an encampment is a lawful order. If police officers are cleaning up an encampment and ask you to leave, you should follow their instructions. You also may not block their activities or otherwise obstruct their work.

Can the police remove you from a homeless encampment and take you to a hospital against your will if they believe you are mentally ill?

Maybe. A police officer may, without a warrant, detain you and take you to a public or private hospital for evaluation if they have reason to believe, based on their observations, that you are suffering from a mental illness and, because of the illness, if you are not hospitalized, you are likely to injure yourself or others. DC Department of Behavioral Health employees and certain medical professionals can do the same thing. Once taken to a hospital, you will be screened for admission. You will be admitted for further evaluation only if a doctor determines that you are a danger to yourself or others.

Can the police remove you from a homeless encampment and take you to jail solely because you do not agree to go to a homeless shelter or receive mental health services?

No. The police can require you to leave an encampment, and an officer can arrest you without a warrant if they have probable cause to believe you have committed or are committing a crime. However, it is not a crime to refuse to go to a homeless shelter. It also is not a crime to refuse to receive mental health treatment, unless a court has ordered otherwise.

Can the police destroy your property in a homeless encampment?

Maybe. The U.S. Constitution likely prohibits the police and other government officials from destroying your non-hazardous belongings at a homeless encampment without your consent if you have not abandoned them. However, your non-abandoned, non-hazardous belongings may be removed from an encampment as long as they are stored safely so that you can retrieve them. Any hazardous material at an encampment may be removed and destroyed, even if it belongs to you.

If the police or other government officials are clearing an encampment and you want to keep your belongings, you should tell them. If you are arrested or otherwise separated from your belongings during clearance, you should ask the police where your belongings will be stored so that you can retrieve them later.