Los Angeles authorities appeared Tuesday at a federal court hearing where a judge is considering whether to hold the city in contempt.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the latest step in a long-running legal saga<\/a> focused on the city’s response to the region\u2019s homelessness crisis.<\/p>\n The hearing was ordered by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, who has been overseeing a settlement in a lawsuit brought against the city by the L.A. Alliance for Human Rights, a group of downtown business and property owners.<\/p>\n L.A. Alliance sued the city and county in 2020, accusing both of failing to adequately address homelessness by providing enough shelter and housing for thousands of unhoused people.<\/p>\n The contempt-of-court hearing started nearly two weeks ago<\/a> but was paused until Tuesday, after the Thanksgiving holiday and when more witnesses could appear in person.<\/p>\n Two witnesses testified during Tuesday\u2019s hours-long hearing: a deputy chief with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority and a former policy advisor for the L.A. Alliance. They largely fielded detailed questions about the settlement, their respective responsibilities in each organization, data reporting and the definitions of relevant terms such as “encampment” and “offer of shelter.”<\/p>\n Other witnesses are expected to testify throughout the hearing, including Matt Szabo<\/a>, the L.A. city administrative officer, who may be called to the stand Thursday.<\/p>\n How we got here<\/p>\n The contempt hearing is expected to cover whether the city has complied with court orders and provided regular updates to the court under the settlement agreement reached in 2022.<\/p>\n Carter said in a Nov. 14 order<\/a> that he\u2019s concerned \u201cthe city has demonstrated a continuous pattern of delay\u201d in meeting its obligations under court orders. He said he\u2019s concerned the \u201cdelay continues to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n Attorneys for the city<\/a> have pushed back against the hearing, filing objections<\/a> with the judge and making an unsuccessful emergency request<\/a> with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals last month to block it from happening. City authorities also asked the appeals court to press pause on the judge\u2019s order to appoint a monitor in the case to make sure the city stays on track with the settlement.<\/p>\n The appeals court<\/a> allowed the contempt-of-court hearing to move forward Nov. 19 but agreed to pause the appointment of Daniel Garrie as monitor<\/a>.<\/p>\n What’s next<\/p>\n