The Stakes of Omaha’s Homeless Crisis are Getting Higher

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Issue Areas

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Officials across Omaha are warning that life is getting untenably dangerous for homeless people. Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson released a video statement warning of lethally cold temperatures and assuring homeless people of available space in the county’s shelters. Omaha Fire Chief Kathy Bossman held a press conference raising awareness of dangerous fires in abandoned buildings, many of which are caused by squatting homeless people. 

The lives of homeless Nebraskans and those of the broader community are at stake. New policies are in order to meet this humanitarian crisis.

The tragic death of Krissy Gallagher-McMillan, who froze to death in a homeless encampment last winter, highlights the urgency for laws against unregulated camping. Ms. Gallagher-McMillan previously testified against a bill before the Nebraska legislature that would have regulated street camping and allowed law enforcement to require people to move into shelters or designated camping areas. In extreme cases, such as her own, law enforcement could resort to arrest in order to save the lives of those who otherwise refuse to go inside for their own safety. The sad reality is that in matters of life or death, jail saves lives. 

The same is true for homeless individuals who intentionally or unintentionally cause fires due to squatting in abandoned buildings. Homeless individuals are 514 times as likely as the general public to commit arson. These fires can be deadly for homeless people, neighbors, and firefighters. Accidents such as fires are the second leading cause of death for homeless people, after drug overdoses. 

Drug overdoses among the homeless are so high that they have ten times the mortality rate of people in prisons and jail. Moreover, living on the street is associated with three times higher likelihood of death compared to living in a homeless shelter.

Violent victimization of homeless people also contributes to the high mortality rate, as homeless people are 19 times as likely as the general public to be murdered. Beyond mortality, homeless people are nine times as likely to be sexually assaulted, before accounting for disproportionate violence committed against homeless women. 

But too often, homeless people victimize other homeless people. Homeless people are 130 times as likely to commit violent crimes compared to the general public. And homeless people are much more likely to be registered sex offenders, as Sheriff Hanson noted recently when he engaged with a registered sex offender living in a camp in the woods. As many as 61 percent of people living on the street in Nebraska are registered sex offenders according to a recent study.

These public safety risks affect the broader community as well. Fire, criminal activity, and property damage due to homeless encampments or squatting lead to rising insurance costs for the community in their proximity, pushing more people into financial precarity. 

Recent changes to federal policy may also affect Omaha’s ability to receive funding for homeless services through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Department of Transportation. If Omaha and other cities across Nebraska do not enact and enforce laws against homeless encampments, squatting, and open drug use, then they may be ineligible to receive tens of millions of dollars in federal support for projects ranging from housing for the homeless to construction at Eppley Airfield. Officials must act soon to avoid the catastrophic cuts.

If local officials are unwilling to close these policy gaps soon, the state legislature should look to states like Oklahoma and Kentucky that have empowered state leaders to intervene when homeless encampments grow out of control. There is too much at stake for leaders to delay taking action to address the humanitarian and public safety crises among Nebraska’s homeless.