Homeless individuals in Athens County look for various places to stay in the cold winter months. Some find beds at homeless shelters, but some find a place to stay at Southeastern Regional Jail for the night.
Some local homeless individuals resort to public intoxication and causing a disruption in hopes of catching the eye of local law enforcement for a meal and warm place to stay: jail.
When Athens County Sheriff Rodney Smith receives a call about a homeless individual, his office will try to refer him or her to a local shelter.
If the displaced is intoxicated or causing disorder in a public place, though, deputies will transport him or her to the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail.
During his law enforcement career, Smith said he’s seen homeless individuals commit crimes in hopes of being transported to a jail for warm place to stay and something to eat.
“It’s normally someone who's familiar with the justice system,” Smith said.
In February, the sheriff’s office received two calls for publicly intoxicated homeless men.
On Feb. 18, a drunken man told deputies he had been drinking to stay warm. The man informed deputies he wanted to go to SEORJ so he wouldn’t freeze to death, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office. He was transported to the jail until he was sober.
The next day, deputies responded to another drunken, homeless individual who was looking in household windows, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office. He was also taken to SEORJ to be held until sober.
The two individuals were held for six hours.
It’s rare for the sheriff’s office to get a call related to a homeless individual, Smith said.
“To my knowledge, they at least have a friend or relative they can stay with,” Smith said.
He went on to say the law stays in place, regardless of an individual’s situation.
“If they commit a crime, we have to arrest them,” Smith said.
Jeremy Tolson, the warden at SEORJ said his facility, like any other, has housed homeless individuals.
“They’re charged (when they commit a crime) just like anyone else,” Tolson said.
Smith said he usually sees an influx of homeless individuals looking for a place to stay during the winter.
Autumn Crabtree, a case manager at Bridgehaven Homeless shelter in Waverly, Ohio, said the shelter gets referrals for its current residents from organizations such as job and family services and the sheriff’s office.
Bridgehaven is usually full October through the beginning of March, Crabtree said.
Bridgehaven has a maximum occupancy of 15, and the maximum period of time someone can stay, according to state regulation, is set at three months.
“We end up calling other shelters to do referrals,” Crabtree said.
She said sometimes donations to the facility are scarce due to the struggling economy.
“Usually around Thanksgiving and Christmas we see more of an impact on different types of donations, but even this year… it was still scarce,” Crabtree said.
Donations to the shelter include food, money, household items and clothing.
The shelter fundraises with Amazon and Kroger, which set aside a percentage of sales for the shelter.
On Amazon, donors can choose Pike County Outreach Council — which is Bridgehaven’s main company — as a charity of choice. Those who shop at Kroger can set up their rewards card online and using a special code provided by Bridgehaven’s website.
“We’re still trying to get the word out,” Crabtree said.
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