HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019CV30889 - Adam Wiemold V. City Of Fort Collins - 024 - Notice Of Supplemental Authority1
District Court, Larimer County, Colorado
201 LaPorte Ave.
Fort Collins, CO 80521
COURT USE ONLY
Appeal from the Fort Collins Municipal Court
The Honorable Kathleen M. Lane
Case No. 2018-0240752-MD
PEOPLE OF CITY OF FORT COLLINS,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
Adam Wiemold,
Defendant-Appellant
Adam Frank, #38979
FRANK & SALAHUDDIN LLC
1133 N Pennsylvania St.
Denver, CO 80203
Phone: (303) 974-1084 Fax: (303) 974-1085
E-mail: adam@fas-law.com
In cooperation with the American Civil
Liberties Union Foundation of Colorado
Mark Silverstein, #26979
Rebecca Wallace, #39606
ACLU Foundation of Colorado
303 E. 17th Ave., Suite 350
Denver, CO 80203
Phone: (303) 777-5482 Fax: (303) 777-1773
Email: msilverstein@aclu-co.org
rtwallace@aclu-co.org
Case No. 2019 CV 30889
NOTICE OF SUPPLEMENTAL AUTHORITY
Pursuant to Colorado Appellate Rule 28(i), Mr. Wiemold provides the Court with the
following supplemental authority:
Blake v. City of Grants Pass, No. 1:18-cv-01823-CL, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129494 (D. Or.
July 22, 2020). This decision is a ruling on cross-motions for summary judgment in a class action
lawsuit brought by homeless plaintiffs alleging that the City of Grants Pass, OR enacted a set of
ordinances that punished people based on their status of being involuntarily homeless. Blake ruled in
favor of the homeless plaintiffs.
2
Blake held that, under Martin v. City of Boise, 920 F.3d 584 (9th Cir. 2019), it violates the
Eighth Amendment to enforce a “no camping” ordinance against people experiencing homelessness
when a shelter bed in the city is not available. Id. at *17-*27. This is the central issue on appeal.
Blake also addresses the City’s argument (Answer Brief, p. 11, 29) that Mr. Wiemold could
simply leave Fort Collins to comply with the City’s ordinance. At pages *23-*24, the Blake court
wrote, “[The City of] Grants Pass argues that [the homeless] Plaintiffs have alternative ‘realistically
available’ shelter outside the City on federal BLM land, Josephine County land, or state rest stops.
This remarkable argument not only fails under Martin, but it also sheds light on the City’s attitude
towards its homeless citizens. Essentially, Grants Pass argues that it should be permitted to continue
to punish its homeless population because Plaintiffs have the option to just leave the City. The City’s
suggestion that because it is geographically smaller than Boise or other cities, it should be allowed to
drive its homeless population onto ‘nearby’ federal, state, or Josephine County land, is not supported
by Martin.” Mr. Wiemold made a similar argument in his reply (Reply Brief, p. 4).
Finally, Blake made no inquiry into whether the individual homeless plaintiffs had the means
to purchase shelter on any particular night. Blake is thus relevant to the parties’ arguments on that
topic. Opening Brief, p. 13-15; Answer Brief, p. 12 & 28-33; Reply Brief, p. 15-20.
__________________________________
Adam Frank, #38979
Frank & Salahuddin LLC
In cooperation with the ACLU Foundation of Colorado
Dated: July 29, 2020
__________________________________
Mark Silverstein, #26979
ACLU Foundation of Colorado
Dated: July 29, 2020
3
__________________________________
Rebecca Wallace, #39606
ACLU Foundation of Colorado
Dated: July 29, 2020
4
Certificate of Service
I hereby certify that on July 29, 2020, I served a true and correct copy of the foregoing electronically
via the CCE e-filing system upon the following individuals, either through CCE:
John Duval
jduval@fcgov.com
Andrew Ringel
ringela@hallevans.com
______________________
Adam Frank
FRANK AND SALAHUDDIN LLC
Attorney for Mr. Wiemold