The City of Saint-Jérôme will be able to continue to dismantle homeless encampments on its territory despite the cold weather.
The Superior Court refused Friday to issue a provisional interlocutory injunction so that the municipality immediately stops dismantling homeless encampments, as requested by the Traveling Legal Clinic.
This legal organization defending the rights of homeless people argues that Saint-Jérôme contravenes the fundamental rights of the homeless, since the municipality does not offer an adequate alternative solution to evicted campers.
Saint-Jérôme has municipal regulations prohibiting any person from sleeping “on the streets, sidewalks, parks, playgrounds and in any other public place.” In 2022, the municipality also banned the erection of camps for non-recreational purposes.
Since then, the camps for homeless people have been regularly dismantled, denounce stakeholders and homeless people in the community cited in the appeal.
However, the city only has six emergency beds, for a population of around 40 to 50 homeless people living outside.
In addition, the operation of the only emergency shelter, the Hutte, bars access to certain people, for example if they are impaired or present behavioral issues, indicate the legal documents consulted by The Press.
Contacted Friday evening, the lawyer representing the Traveling Legal Clinic, Mr.e Donald Tremblay, indicated that the procedure initiated by the organization included several stages and that the interlocutory injunction “is only the first”.
Indeed, the Superior Court will be called upon to examine the merits of the question on a date which remains to be determined.
With Lila Dussault, The Press