Lawsuit Alleges Inhumane Conditions at Orange County Homeless Shelters
Alleged appalling living conditions and persistent abuse at three Orange County, California, emergency homeless shelters have sparked a lawsuit.
Eight plaintiffs allege relentless sexual harassment, invasive body searches, unchecked groping, and lewd propositions from staff members and residents.
The lawsuit, filed on Dec. 10 in Orange County’s Superior Court by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California (ACLU SoCal) and the law firm Kirkland & Ellis, argues that the unlivable environments at the shelters violate California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act and provisions of California’s Constitution.
The shelters—Bridges and La Mesa in Anaheim, and The Courtyard in Santa Ana—are overcrowded, infested with rodents and bedbugs, and plagued by filthy and broken toilets, unrepaired showers, and extreme temperatures, the suit states.