FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Food

Elderly Homeless Man Cited For Eating Pizza at Bus Stop

The man was ticketed $250 on what the SFPD is calling a 'quality of life' charge.
Photo via Flickr user muyyum

It seems like there's no wrong time to eat pizza. It's the perfect food, it doesn't require any silverware other than your own hands, and any time of day that you want to shove it into your mouth is exactly the right time. But apparently that's not true in San Francisco, where an elderly homeless man was given a citation, all because he was eating a slice inside a bus shelter.

On March 31, Kelly Cutler, a social worker and organizer with the city's Coalition on Homelessness, tweeted a picture of the man's infraction report, with the words DEFENDANT COPY in bold red letters in the bottom right corner. And, sure enough, in the description section, the officer had written "Eating in the shelter," which can come with a fine of up to $250.

Advertisement

The man brought the citation to the attention of the Coalition, telling workers that he'd bought the pizza for his friend's birthday. Although eating on public transit is not permitted (even pizza), citations are rarely issued. Paul Rose, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority, told the San Francisco Chronicle that he didn't know whether or not that rule included bus shelters—but that the regulations "didn't necessary extend" beyond the buses themselves.

The San Francisco Police Department has tried to defend itself, explaining that the man was cited because of a stabbing that had taken place in the shelter earlier. Officer Grace Gatpandan, a department spokesperson, said that there had been complaints about people eating, drinking and smoking in the shelter and the officer was trying to "move him along."

On Friday, activists held a #LegalizePizza protest that encouraged eating and distributing pizza in solidarity with the homeless population in SF.

Cutler described the man's paperwork as a "quality of life" citation, explaining to Hoodline that the charges—and any related fines—will probably be thrown out. "We have a process for poor or homeless folks where it won't cost anything, because the judge will normally dismiss it if they show they are accessing social services," she said. "Taking care of the citation requires jumping through a bunch of hoops, and that takes a lot of time. That's the punishment, basically."

This still seems a little ridiculous, but then again, so does the other side of the issue—when well-meaning citizens are arrested for trying to feed the homeless.

According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, more than 26 US cities have laws that restrict or ban food distribution, even by the best Samaritans. In April 2015, Chef Joan Cheever was arrested for giving meals to the homeless in San Antonio, a ticket that came with a potential $2,000 fine. (The charges were later dropped). And just this January, seven activists were arrested in Tampa, Florida for handing out bagels and hot coffee in a city park.

But it's not all bad. Rosa's Fresh Pizza in Philadelphia has a pay-pizza-forward business model that allows customers to pre-pay for $1 slices of pizza that are then given to the homeless. Janine, a manager at Rosa's, told MUNCHIES that the restaurant passes out between 200 and 250 slices every day. This month alone, the staff has already distributed 800 slices of pizza—and we're just a handful of days in.

Back to the other side of the country, though. MUNCHIES has reached out to the San Francisco Police Department for comment but has not yet received a response.