Phillip Picone, the first of dozens to challenge a ticket for feeding the hungry outside the Houston Public Library in violation of local law, has been declared "not guilty" by a jury.
A man has been found not guilty of breaking a law against feeding homeless people outside a public library in Houston, concluding the first trial to be held after dozens of tickets were issued against volunteers for the group Food Not Bombs. Friday's verdict in the sprawling Texas city is latest flashpoint in the debate in many American cities over whether feeding the homeless is an act of charity or a crime that raises health and safety concerns among people who live and work nearby.