CLINTON COUNTY, Ind. – A recent incident of a person setting-up a campsite between a roadway and a private citizens’ front property line outside of incorporated limits left the sheriff’s office without an enforcement option to legally remove the person according to Commissioners President Jordan Brewer during the Tuesday commissioners meeting.
The title of the ordinance – the camping ordinance – “can be a little misleading, but it’s in regards to pedaling and solicitation,” stated Brewer when introducing the ordinance to the board.
Brewer provided the history of why there is a need for this ordinance, “we had an issue a couple weeks ago where there was an individual who was evicted from their home and they decided to go to a vacant lot and set up tent and that landowner had ’em removed. So at that point, they decided to go to the county right-of-way between the road and someone’s house – essentially what someone would consider is the front yard and throw up their campsite.”
“It put the sheriff’s department a precarious situation because they didn’t have any ability to have this person removed; there was some concern that the person was on drugs and just some other issues going on mentally. The homeowners in that area had little kids. And so I think everyone that had kids would see the concern that this person’s in their, what they presume is their front yard, that’s the county right-of-way and their kids can’t go outside or this person may try and break in their home. I mean, there’s just a lot of issues, but we had no legal ability to do anything.”
The commissioner spoke to both Sheriff Kelly and Matron Kelly to determine how best to resolve an issue like this going forward.
“In conversation with the sheriff and the matron, it was presented to us that there’s an ordinance that some other counties have out there that would allow for them to have the ability to remove this person,” commented Brewer.
Sheriff Kelly was thankful of the commissioners actions when asked after the meeting.
“It’ll help us because we have a handful of situations throughout the year with the different agencies here in Clinton County – from Frankfort Police to the Town Marshalls – that we’ll have people that’ll either be coming through the area and they’ll select a spot and they set up a campsite or tent and they stay,” said Kelly. “It gives us the opportunity to enforce an ordinance that we can have them move their things, leave the property without incident.”
The sheriff continued, “it’s a little unnerving when people find people on their property… it’s somebody else’s property where it’s the county’s property and it’s not designed to house anybody or to allow anybody to camp there.”
In the specific incident that brought about the action of the newly passed ordinance, two community organizations assisted in providing care for the person – allowing the person to leave the campsite.
“It ended up working out the best case scenario,” said Brewer. “We go Lorra Archibald [of] Healthy Communities involved, and Jami Pratt [with] Home For The Night and we’re thankful for both of those individuals in their help – we ended up getting this person in Home For The Night and, and getting them to a mental rehab facility.”
Brewer thanked the Sheriff’s Department for its assistance.
“We are thankful to the Sheriff’s Department,” Brewer commented. “They sent over another counties and we just adopted it and made a few tweaks to fit our community.”
The new ordinance will become effective in 30-days after legal publication according to state statute.
