NEWS
B Y K E N N Y J A C O BY
‘You’ve denied all the evidence that irrefutably proves
the criminalization of homelessness, so I don’t know
what else I can tell you.’
— ROD ADAMS
ROD ADAMS IN THE
DAYS BEFORE HE
BECAME UNHOUSED
PHOTO COURTESY ROD ADAMS
THE (FIRST) TRIAL
OF ROD ADAMS
Adams argued his arrest for sleeping
on public property criminalizes
homelessness, but a judge wasn’t
hearing it
O
n an early February morning, Rod Adams was lying
in a sleeping bag under an awning in downtown Eu-
gene when a security guard woke him up.
Adams, 61, had been sleeping on private prop-
erty. The security guard asked him to leave. Adams
said “OK,” got up and left.
The security guard notified Eugene police officer Bo
Rankin of the encounter. Five days later, Rankin issued Ad-
ams a citation for trespassing.
Because of that encounter, Adams, his public defender, a
city prosecutor, a judge, the police officer, the security guard,
the building manager, six jury members and about a dozen
civilians supporting Adams spent the better part of Nov. 15 at
Eugene Municipal Court for Adams’ trial.
The jury found Adams guilty of criminal trespass in the
second degree. Judge Richard Fredericks sentenced Adams
to probation, and the threat of jail time if he commits a similar
offense in the future. Adams will almost certainly reoffend.
Since he moved to Eugene nine years ago, Adams, who
HAPPENING
PEOPLE
BY
PAUL
NEEVEL
is homeless, has been ticketed or arrested more than 40 times
for a variety of minor, nonviolent crimes, including trespass-
ing, illegal camping, violating park rules and jaywalking.
Adams has two more pending trespass charges for sleeping,
which he also plans to take to trials.
Adams and his lawyer, Joe Connelly, filed a motion to
dismiss all three trespass charges, arguing enforcement of the
law under these circumstances criminalizes homelessness
and violates Eighth Amendment restrictions on cruel and un-
usual punishment. There are insufficient beds for the number
of homeless in Eugene, Adams is not eligible for many of the
beds and Eugene Mission had no available beds the nights in
question, they argued.
Fredericks denied the motion.
Adams wanted to argue the necessity defense — that
committing the crime was justified due to an imminent dan-
ger, because there was no practical alternative and because
the harm prevented was greater than the harm done. But a
judge excluded the defense, saying there was no imminent
danger.
“What about 27 dead homeless people in one year in Eu-
gene?” Adams said.
Any attempt Connelly made to introduce homelessness as
a factor in the case was quickly shot down by the city pros-
ecutor and judge. While cross-examining Rankin, Connelly
asked, “Are you aware that there are insufficient beds in Eu-
gene?”
“Objection, your honor, relevance,” said the city prosecu-
tor, Suzanne Bruce.
“Sustained,” Fredericks said.
When Adams took the stand, Connelly asked, “Have you
had problems finding housing?”
“Objection, your honor,” said the prosecutor.
“I’m going to sustain the objection,” the judge said.
“Do you have to sleep at night, or at least sometime dur-
ing the day?” Connelly asked Adams.
“Objection, your honor,” Bruce said. “The facts in this
case don’t fall on whether the defendant was sleeping or not.
They only fall on what the defendant was doing at a particu-
lar time, and I think that leads us into muddy waters.”
“I agree,” Fredericks said. “I’ll sustain the objection.”
The defense was going to call two witnesses, Sue Sierra-
lupe and Arwen Maas-Despain, who work with the homeless
through Occupy Medical, a service that provides free health
care services to the Eugene community. But about five hours
into the trial Connelly told them there was no way they’d be
allowed to testify in this case.
According to Oregon law, “a person commits the crime
of criminal trespass in the second degree if the person enters
or remains unlawfully” upon a premises. It was clear Adams
broke the law — video footage showed as much — but with-
out the ability to explain why, his case was dead in the water.
“Where do the moral obligations reside in America?” Ad-
ams said loudly, before the jury left the courtroom to deliber-
ate.
The jury deliberated for 20 minutes before delivering the
verdict.
According to Eugene Weekly’s analysis of Eugene Mu-
nicipal Court records, 35 percent of tickets Eugene police
wrote for minor, non-traffic crimes in 2016 were issued to in-
dividuals who were homeless or lacked a permanent address,
despite the homeless accounting for no more than 2 percent
of the city’s population.
When Fredericks asked Adams to make a statement prior
to sentencing him, Adams said, “You’ve denied all the evi-
dence that irrefutably proves the criminalization of home-
lessness, so I don’t know what else I can tell you. We’ve
proved it, and you refuse to hear it.”
“You may feel like we’re trying to grind you under our
heels, and I can tell you that’s not the case,” Fredericks re-
sponded. “We try to help people. We try to hook them up
with services. No one is trying to punish someone for being
homeless.”
The city prosecutor recommended a sentence of five days
in jail and probation. Connelly recommended no more than
one or two days in jail. Fredericks sentenced Adams to a year
of probation, plus seven days in jail the next time he tres-
passes.
Adams' next trials are slated for Dec. 7 and 13.
LEAH RIEDLINGER
Born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Leah Riedlinger arrived in Eugene with her
family at age one. She played soccer at Buena Vista Elementary and Monroe
Middle School, but switched to cross country as a sophomore at Sheldon High.
“I spent the next summer in Alaska, packing fish,” she says. “I came back, took
three extra classes and graduated after my junior year.” She spent one year in
Texas (“because I like country music”) and worked in a restaurant, then
started college at Southern Oregon University in Ashland. “They had a cool
ethics program,” she says. “I decided to be a philosophy major.” She studied
Spanish and theology for a year at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador,
and worked for Pedalers Express in Eugene while completing a BA in
philosophy at the University of Oregon. Afterwards, she had jobs with nonprofit
groups in Portland and spent three years in a Buddhist monastery in Okayama,
Japan. “I was on track for ordainment as a nun,” she says, but instead she
returned to Eugene in 2013 and found work as a case manager with Catholic
Community Services. “I liked working there. I was given the names of people at
the [Eugene] Mission or living in a tent, and I worked to help them get approved
for rentals.” She is currently enrolled in grad school at Portland State and
designing research projects in Eugene to facilitate communication between
the unhoused and people living more privileged lives. On Wednesday, Nov. 29,
she will host a Lunch Match event, a free luncheon and workshop for around
40 participants, both housed and unhoused who will share personal stories
and solutions-forward conversation. Registration is required. For information,
email lunchmatcheugene@gmail.com.
eugeneweekly.com • November 22, 2017
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