A pair of St. Louis homeowners are suing the city after a homeless couple set up camp outside their homes and the mayor told police not to intervene.
Two Missouri residents are fed up with dealing with a homeless encampment in their backyard for three years.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Richard Baumhoff and Steven McClanahan, who alleged that St. Louis refused to intervene in the crisis despite numerous requests.
Baumhoff and McClanahan have claimed that the homeless couple are “scary, smelly and loud,” according to their attorney W. Bevis Schock.
“For three years, two people have been living in a makeshift tent in front of their house,” Schock said. Fox News Digital.
A pair of St. Louis homeowners are suing the city after a homeless couple set up camp outside their homes and the mayor told police not to intervene.
Two Missouri residents are fed up with dealing with a homeless encampment in their front yard for three years.
‘They have a beautiful front porch. They would like to go out with a nice cup of coffee in the morning and let the sun beat down on them and that can’t happen because these scary, smelly, loud people are there and they don’t have proper use of their house. that’s why.’
The homeowners say they are terrified of ‘Roe and Doe,’ as the homeless couple is referred to in legal documents.
‘On some occasions, Doe and Roe have become aggressive toward plaintiffs and have yelled at them and other people. Plaintiffs fear Doe and Roe because of their unpredictability.
“Plaintiffs no longer use their porch and front yard due to noxious odors emanating from the store (including the smell of feces),” the petition said.
Police told residents the crisis was out of their hands, and Democratic Mayor Tishaura O. Jones ordered police not to intervene, according to the petition filed.
The squatters allegedly use the storm sewer as a toilet, which means the camp “smells like poop,” according to Schock.
Schock described the makeshift bathroom as a “public health hazard.”
‘The plaintiff neighbors have seen (the homeless) straddling the sewer, using it as a bathroom. (The) use of storm sewer causes a public health hazard,” the documents say.
“It’s disgusting,” he said. ‘These people don’t shower every day. They have garbage in their house. They see rats running. They throw their rubbish outside their makeshift shop, including chicken bones, which attract vermin.’
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Richard Baumhoff and Steven McClanahan, who alleged that St. Louis refused to intervene in the crisis despite numerous requests.
Baumhoff and McClanahan have claimed that the homeless couple are “scary, smelly and loud,” according to their attorney W. Bevis Schock.
‘On some occasions, Doe and Roe have become aggressive toward plaintiffs and have yelled at them and other people. “Plaintiffs are afraid of Doe and Roe because of their unpredictability,” the petition states.
Although Schock describes his clients as “compassionate” people, he says they can no longer bear their living conditions.
“They scream a lot and that’s a little scary and it’s not that my clients aren’t brave people who can handle someone yelling at them from time to time, but it’s uncomfortable for them because of that,” the lawyer said.
Owners fear for their own safety and that of their guests. They claim they can no longer mow the lawn, park in front of their house or even use the front entrance to their homes.
‘Doe and Roe come out from time to time to wash up. “Doe wraps a towel around her waist but then exposes herself by changing from towel to clothing,” the petition said.
Schock has claimed that the city can “get rid” of homeless people whenever it wants, but in this situation it chooses not to.
He referenced Kamala Harris’ trip to St. Louis in 2023, claiming that the vice president’s visit inspired the city to “take out” all the homeless.
“When Kamala Harris visited St. Louis and there was a group of homeless people living in tents on City Hall grounds, she took them all out,” Schock said.
‘I don’t know where they went. He got rid of them for the big visit of the vice president of the United States. This way they can take them out whenever they want. They just have to want to do it and that is an important factor in the case.
“They scream a lot and that’s a little scary and it’s not that my clients aren’t brave people who can handle someone yelling at them from time to time, but it’s uncomfortable for them because of that,” the lawyer said.
Police told residents the crisis was out of their hands, and Democratic Mayor Tishaura O. Jones ordered police not to intervene, according to the petition filed.
Schock went on to say that the “woke” city administration is made up of “leftists” who don’t care about taxpayer interests and are “on the side of the homeless.”
“They think homeless people do what they do because rich white men cause their problems and that’s how they see it,” Schock said.
“They don’t care about the interests of the taxpayers,” he continued.
The petition was presented on February 16.
Missouri reported a total homeless population of 6,708 in 2023, a 12 percent increase from the previous year.