Unhoused people file lawsuit against City of Burien's camping ban ordinance
BURIEN, Wash. - A month after it started enforcing its public camping ban, the city of Burien is now facing a lawsuit. It was filed in King County Superior Court on Wednesday by the Northwest Justice Project on behalf of three unhoused Burien residents and the Seattle King County Coalition on Homelessness.
The complaint alleges Ordinance 818, which prohibits camping on public property between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. – voted and enacted in September 2023, ‘banishes’ unhoused residents from the city.
Elizabeth Hale and her husband Alex, plaintiffs in the case, were among the dozens of people who called the median off Ambaum home after they were continuously swept from downtown to Dottie Harper Park and eventually pushed out.
"We’re like a family out here," Hale told FOX 13 back in September. "We want housing, we just want to be treated fairly, and good conditions. We don’t want to be out here any more than people want us out here."
The Hales were swept on Dec. 1, according to the complaint, without being offered shelter or housing,
Executive Director Alison Eisinger questioned, "Where do people go?"
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The city waited to enforce the ordinance until the community had been informed, but it also stated it would offer housing or shelter. However, none is readily available within the city. On Nov. 27, council members met for a last-ditch effort to try and vote on a location for a shelter. After months of back and forth, they agreed – ensuring to notify King County Regional Homelessness Authority who would be funding the city with $1 million towards the shelter. However, there are not any shelters available.
"The gist of it is pretty clear, don't be here," Eisinger said regarding how many unhoused people are interpreting the situation. "This is a cheap and dirty way to pretend that a local government is doing something."
Their attorney, Scott Crain with the Northwest Justice Project, says it criminalizes their status.
"It's cruel punishment to say to somebody you can't cook outside, you can't set your stuff down; you can't protect yourself from the elements during the daytime," Cain said.
The Hales ended up at Sunnydale Village, a temporary encampment located on Oasis Home Church's parking lot created by Burien Community Support Coalition. The nonprofit was founded by former council member Cydne Moore, who has been very outspoken about the unhoused community.
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"They may not have houses but Burien is their home and saying that 'you do not have a right to exist here, you don't have a right to have so much as a blanket to keep you warm out in the middle of winter'; that's a tough pill for any person to swallow," Moore said regarding the lawsuit.
She only found out late Wednesday. "People should fight back," Moore said. "It'll be left for the courts to decide whether they're in the right or not, but I think they've dealt with a lot."
While no one was arrested during the December clearing, the Hale's and other unhoused people fear being arrested if they refuse to leave Burien, or if the city enforces its ordinance.
The complaint seeks to have the courts declare the ordinance is unconstitutional, and therefore it can't be enforced.
"We're not naive," Eisinger said. "A lawsuit is not the be-all and end-all." She says more work needs to be done to help provide those experiencing homelessness with housing; that's their main goal.
The case will go to trial in January 2025.
FOX 13 reached out to Burien city leaders who said they can't comment on pending litigation.