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Jail time for serving homeless in Florida?

Fort Lauderdale, Florida has recently passed a new ordinance banning public food sharing and now one 90-year-old Arnold Abbot and two pastors may be paying the price. Arnold and the others were charged Sunday for feeding the homeless in public which means they could face jail time and a $500 fine.
“An officer said, ‘Drop that plate right now’ – like I had a weapon,” Abbott said. Though homeless advocates are against the new ordinance, city officials say they will enforce it. Mayor Jack Seiler also defended the law telling the Sun-Sentinel newspaper, “I’m not satisfied with having a cycle of homeless in the city of Fort Lauderdale. Providing them with a meal and keeping them in that cycle on the street is not productive.” But Arnold disagrees. “They have nothing. They don’t have a roof over their head,” he said. “Who can turn them away?” This isn’t the first time Arnold has been in this situation. In 1999 he sued the city for not allowing him to feed the homeless on the beach. He fought and won then and sais this threat isn’t going to stop him from doing it again saying he’ll be back out on Wednesday serving food to the homeless at Fort Lauderdale Beach.

For more see: http://www.cnn.com/2...e+%28RSS%3A+Crime%29

9 years ago by JodieMH

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