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Focus Group-Samm Trail 3 Male 1: What would you say is the need and what would you say is a solution to homelessness? Male 2: Well, the homeless people, like I said, we all live on hard times. Me, I’m fortunate to have my mom and dad, so I moved back with them late last year. And the homeless people, not all of us are capable of necessarily getting jobs and stuff so, it’s like it’s hard. I, unfortunately, can’t get a job right now because I’m leaving out of state again, leaving at the end of this month. But, the homeless situation, the solution to it is talk to the mayor and put funding in. Male 1: For what? Male 2: The homeless, so they can’t, like, spend, you know? Male 1: What would you say is needed? Male 2: Tents, so they can keep themselves covered and warm and stuff and just mainly, telling the cops to back off, because that’s what’s pissing off most of the homeless people. And with the two issues that have happened, it’s mostly because of the cops. And, yeah, I’m friends with one of the officers, yes, I’m very good friends with them. But it’s just that they try to chase us all out. They try to chase out everybody who is homeless and all it does is just chase them off towards Woodinville and Woodinville chases them right back. So it’s just this constant game of cat and mouse. Male 1: Do you think most folks that are here in Redmond that’s homeless come here or are they from the area? Male 2: Most of them aren’t. Most of them are from towards Seattle and which those are the ones that the city really does not particularly need. Those are the bad apples out of the apple tree. And you’ve got him and him. These three people are homeless. He lives in a shelter, but he lives at an undisclosed location. And these two are very down-to-earth, good people. And there’s quite a few of my friends who are homeless and they all come to me if they have issues with those people. And I will come out; he knows. He’s called me a couple of times when I’ve been about five or six beers in, you jerk. So, and it’s like I will come out and defuse the situation to the best of my ability. But I haven’t had to do that in, what, a couple years now? About a couple years now, because I’ve managed to chase out most of the bad apples out of the city, telling them hey, if you don’t leave, you’re going to have this, this, this, this, this and this. And no, you have a criminal background all and ---PAGE BREAK--- everything to deal with cops. And so the bad apples out of the tree have been chased out, because they know that I’m very good friends with most of Redmond PD. And I am very good friends with them and I will work with the Redmond PD from time to time if they absolutely need me to. I will work with them to the best what I can do it and I’ll help them out. Male 1: So, what do folks need? Male 2: Mostly around here and stuff... Male 1: Do a lot of people want to stay where they are or do they want to move out into being under…? Male 2: Well, 90% of these people actually want to stay in the city, because it’s mellow. It’s very, very, very low crime rate. But it’s just that you got a few of those bad individuals that like to come out and disturb the peace and raise hell. And I’ve already dealt with a couple of them a few nights ago actually. One of them wanted to do it, but I looked at him. I’m like hey, you got to [inaudible words]? If you don’t leave, I’m going to call the cops, simple as that. And he was gone and I haven’t seen him since. But mainly for the population out here, it’s like most of these homeless individuals are getting really, really fed up with Redmond PD and King County Sheriffs chasing them out, telling them hey, if you don’t leave, you’re going to get a criminal trespass and you’re going to get arrested every time we see you. And the one cop that’s actually decent out of all of Redmond PD actually leaves. He could really give two s---s less about who’s homeless and who’s not, because he looks at it like hey, you all living on hard times and it’s the truth. We’re all living on hard times. Not very many of us are fortunate to get or are capable of getting a job. Male 1: Do you think a lot of people want to stay outside or do they want to move indoors and just don’t have the means to? Male 2: During the summertime, 90% of these people like to stay outside because they got the beautiful blue sky; they got clear skies 90% of the summer with the occasional thunderstorm that rolls through. But, no, most of these people like staying outside because they like being one with nature. And it’s like right over here and down the slough, there’s a lot of good spots. But you got rich people going, oh, my god, there’s a homeless guy; he’s going to rob us. No, we’re not. we’re not going to do that. That is not okay. We’re going to look at you like you look at us. We’re going to treat you with respect as long as you treat us with respect. There’s this one dude. I’m not going to mention his name. ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 1: No, don’t mention his name. Male 2: Yeah. But, no, you got a few bad apples out of the tree and there’s a few people that like to stir up fights, start fights, get belligerently piss drunk and start fights. And then you got the sober ones who don’t want nothing to do with it. They just want to be left alone. Male 1: Or they defuse it. Male 2: Yeah. And it’s like really, come on. Male 1: So, this is a bad way of putting it, but you pretty much handle your own folks. Male 2: Yeah. If there’s issues with say, for example him, if he’s got issues, I’m the first guy he’ll call and I will defuse the situation over the phone and they’ll part their ways and everybody will go. And it’s because my mother is a nurse, so I know how to keep the situation calm. Male 1: Are there any services or anything like say, if there was influential people that would hear this that could help in some type of way, is there any services Male 3: Military. Male 2: Military? Male 3: Juvenile military. Male 1: That would be helpful? Male 3: That would put a lot of people, actually, change their lifestyle [inaudible words]. Male 1: Oh, going into the military? Male 3: Yeah, put them in the military. I was in [inaudible words] until I was sixteen. Male 2: There’s also Job Corps. Male 1: But is it local? Is it something that’s accessible? Male 3: You got to go to Seattle for that. Male 2: You got to go to Seattle, go to the headquarters in Seattle [speaking simultaneously - inaudible]. ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 1: Well, I mean if people in this area could build something here, what would you say would be built or that they could put money into that would help people who are in this position? Male 3: A shelter, an all-year-long shelter. Male 1: Another shelter? Male 3: One that doesn’t open from, what, October to May, one that’s 365 days a year. Male 2: Like the Friends of Youth has. But one for adults and juvenile. Male 2: And then having security guards, making sure you keep the juveniles away from the adults, because most of the juveniles are a bunch of whores. Male 1: What about people who want to get out of homelessness and want to get out of the shelter? What would they need? Male 3: Well, that’s an automatic. The police just need to stop closing [inaudible] down, stop cutting bushes, because that’s where people like to kick it. They like shade. They don’t like hot sun being out there. Male 2: They don’t like coming out looking like a frigging lobster. Male 3: Getting hot, like a marshmallow, yeah. Male 1: So, even if you got your own place, you would still come out and hang out together. Male 3: Yeah. And then that’s when the police get hasty about it. And supposedly, they said that if we can hear music ten feet away, we can arrest every single one of you. Male 2: Yeah, well, they tried to arrest me [speaking simultaneously - inaudible]. Male 3: Music’s nature. Hey, everything around you is music, okay, deal with it. That’s all I got to say. Male 2: And it’s like Officer [blank]. Male 3: He’s a good guy. Male 2: He’s the decent one. He’ll turn around like hey, you need to lower the music, because I’m not going [inaudible words], have a great day. Male 3: Officer [blank] and [blank], as well, are the two good ones. ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 2: Yeah, Officer [blank] and Officer [blank], yeah. Two, three, well, she’s a corrections officer, [blank] is. So, she really can’t do anything. But, no, there’s Officer [blank], Corrections Officer [blank] out of Redmond PD. She’s a sweetheart. She is a sweetheart. And I’m going to use an example. His and my ex was in jail for some stupid crap and I went to her court date, showed up. Male 3: She got in trouble for something somebody else did. Male 2: Yeah. Somebody threatened her, so she pulled out a knife in self-defense. And they looked at that, like hold it. Male 3: [speaking simultaneously - inaudible] holding up. There was four of us that pulled them out right this morning. I had three get pulled out. Male 2: And she, unfortunately, got the; I tried, the one night and she turned around and gave, ooh, god, I don’t remember the officer’s name. It was [blank]. It was Officer [blank] that busted her. Male 3: [blank] and [blank]. Male 2: Yeah, the two cops called me. I was like, hello. They go, is this David? I’m like, yeah. Well, we got your girlfriend here. You better tell me what the hell she’s in for. We can’t do that. I’m going, well, you’ve got one or two choices. Male 3: Tell me and get fired. Male 2: Either I tear the city to shreds or you tell me. And I hear my ex in the background, well, you might want to tell him, because he will do it; he will destroy the city. And I will. I have destroyed the city once. I’m basically a one- man wrecking ball and if I get to that point... Male 3: Ain’t way to stop him. Male 2: …there is not a single solitary SOB that will stop me, because I will turn around and whoever decides to take me on is either going to be in the hospital or six feet under and I’m going to be out of the city. Male 3: Are you from the city? Male 2: I was actually born here in Redmond. I am born in Redmond, raised in Kirkland. Male 3: Is that right? Male 3: Wow, so you know the area. ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 1: What type of service was it again? Male 2: I also did military, so I’ve got equal movement of the cops and I’ve got a match for match with the officers. Male 1: Oh, you’ve been in [inaudible]. Male 3: [inaudible words] in the Air Force. Male 2: I was based out of [speaking simultaneously - inaudible]. Male 1: Are you from Redmond too? Male 3: I was originally from Vancouver, Washington, born in Salt Lake City, Utah, moved all around like twenty-five times and it’s like the officers keep moving us around and so just adding on moving [inaudible words], it’s like oh, anytime you keep moving us around, we’re going to keep moving there, keep moving back, keep moving somewhere else. They kick us out. We’re moving back. Ain’t not a thing you can do about it. There is more homeless people that outrank you and more homeless people [speaking simultaneously - inaudible] than there are police officers in that station. Male 2: [speaking simultaneously] There are more homeless people in the population than there are cops. Male 1: And are most of the people who are homeless in Redmond from… Male 3: [speaking simultaneously] Four to five hundred, maybe a thousand homeless compared to seventy-five officers. Male 2: Actually, Redmond just got another hundred. Male 1: So are a lot of the people from this area or live here, have a support system here? Male 3: All through King County, different counties [speaking simultaneously] inaudible]. Male 2: There’s the King County Youths. Male 3: Snohomish County. Male 2: Snohomish County, there’s Pierce, Thurston, Grays Harbor, Port Orchard basically all the counties have got a youth plan that they work with. Male 1: So, its youth in this area pretty much though? ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 2: Yeah. Well, the youth that are currently here have either moved or been chased out of different cities... Male 3: Or been locked up. Male 2: …or locked up. Male 1: Or locked up in the area, yeah. Male 2: Like I said, you got a few bad apples out of the tree that really don’t fall far from the tree. And then you’ve got the good apples that stay on the tree until they’re ready to fall. Male 1: So, the people that you think moved here, are people moving here for the same reason that people move anywhere else just for a better opportunity? Male 2: To get away from the hostility, yeah. And it’s nothing but hostility with Seattle PD. Seattle PD, for example, the police brutality BS. They’ve got a frigging lawsuit up their Male 3: Oh, yeah. Male 2: They got a lawsuit. Male 3: I was one of them that helped out with that thing. It’s like security guards at the mall. Male 2: Yeah, let’s not speak of that. Male 3: …at the Westside Mall. Me and my buddy were out there. Not going to mention names, but… Male 1: Yeah, don’t mention any names. Male 3: …there’s only five security guards left out there because me and my buddy went on [speaking simultaneously - inaudible] rampage and slammed six [inaudible] in that one mall. Male 2: We take them all out one way or another. And it’s like you’ve got a few crooked cops. Male 3: They’re doing whatever the hell they please and it’s not [speaking simultaneously - inaudible] ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 2: Yeah, saying, oh, oh, I’m a rookie. I can get away with that. I don’t give a if you’re a rookie or a veteran [speaking simultaneously - inaudible] police force. I don’t give a He knows one of them that I stood up to. Male 3: Even the cop out in Kirkland. That dude got kicked in the [inaudible words] and slammed a metal bench on top of him. Male 2: Yeah, there was a cop. That thing’s not on recording, is it? Male 1: Yeah, it is. Male 3: It doesn’t matter. They’re trying to get the whole gist of the story. Male 2: It’s just like we got a few individuals. We got a few crooked cops. Then you got the great officers who could give two less. They got more important things to do than to deal with the homeless people creating issues. Yeah, there’s a few individuals that like to rip people off and break into houses, live in abandoned houses, set a house ablaze. Male 3: Let’s not speak of that. Male 2: Yeah, well, but no, you got a few of those guys and you got a few idiots that are just dumber than a box of rocks too. And one of them I will name. Male 1: No, don’t. Male 2: No, no, no, I’m going to name him because the cops have been looking for him, [blank]. He’s a meth head. That dude is a whack job. Male 3: He probably hangs around with one of my ex’s. Male 2: But, no, that dude almost got his whipped by m, because I caught him when he was sober and he started mouthing off towards his and my ex, well, she was my girlfriend at the time, now ex, got all mouthy towards her and turned around and told her he was going to her. And I’m like, not a chance. And she saw me coming from behind, so she distracted him and I decided to [inaudible] the mountain bike, jump off the bike, just plowed him. He hit the concrete and I turned around and told him, I said, if you want to live, I’d suggest you walk. If you don’t want to live, get up and get mouthy to me and see what happens. I guarantee you won’t like it. He took choice number one and got up and walked. He’s seen me pop up out of the middle of nowhere. Male 3: He’d seen you do that. Male 3: Yeah, I scared him from behind. ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 2: But, it’s like I said, you got a few drunks. Male 3: And you also got the homeless people that… Male 3: …advocate for people like him… Male 2: Him and me. Male 3: …and he was in trouble that day and some was about to go down, I popped up out of the middle of nowhere and half hour tops from Lake City to Seattle down to here on a BMX bike, single gear. Male 1: So, you take care of each other? Male 2: Oh, yeah, no, he’s got my back; I got his back. And there’s a girl that’s just the sweetest… Male 3: There’s a saying [speaking simultaneously - inaudible] you got my back. Male 2: You’ve probably heard the old saying, you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours, eye for an eye. It’s like you got my back, I’ll have your back at all times. I don’t give a if it’s snowing, hail, thunder and lightning. It could be flooded. He knows. This trail’s been flooded; sown there where that bridge is has been flooded. Over here, the other bridge, the 85th and 90th have been flooded. And they’ve had me come out, like hey, we need you down here now. Okay. Well, I need you to walk down the trail, make sure it’s not flooded. Well, it is. Oh, I don’t give a I’m coming down. That’s my way through the water. Male 1: Do you want housing or are you good being outside? Male 3: Well, the thing is I’ve been through Friends of Youth his trying to plug me into housing and that straight up when the case manager was mouthing off at me and I straight up pulled one of the female staff outside and talked to her, so I wouldn’t have to deal with his crap. No, I’m just going to be blunt, his punk ass attitude. I’m sorry but... Male 2: Are you talking about [inaudible]? Male 3: The case manager, yeah. He decided to give me a lift and I was like, you know what, I’m talking outside with one of the female staff, because the more I talk to you, the more and more you make me want to punch you in the throat. Male 2: Just punch him in the Adam’s apple. I’ve done it. Male 1: So, is it difficult to get there, to the housing because ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 3: Well, I’ve been in housing one time, didn’t like the situation, because it was a group home status. I couldn’t keep up with what I was doing. I decided to leave, come back to Redmond. Now, they’re trying to put me in the same situation again where I’m not probably going to keep up, has my own key just like the Cedar House situation. And the person there that stays there, I’m not saying their real name; it’s just a street name she goes by. Male 1: Is the housing not adequate for you? Male 3: Group home status where you have to pay 206 bucks a month for rent is kind of outrageous. Especially when you only make $721 a month, by the end of the eight-month period, you have to pay about $1,000, $2,000 in rent. I’m sorry, I don’t have that money. I don’t have that money. It’s the housing situation with King County rent. The rent, all’s they care about is money, money, money, money. That’s their main thing, money. And but it needs to go down to... But, the thing that it’s getting down to is the rent and the money and stuff. That’s all King County cares about is the money, up the wall, okay? Like a police officer, I’m just going to give a definition of any random police officer. The badge is an identification number saying that you’ve killed somebody. The gun is also an identification saying that you will kill somebody, you’re not afraid to do it again. And the uniform is just a uniform. Male 2: It’s just a piece of clothing. Male 3: It’s nothing. It’s saying for that uniform to be like that, it’s saying that you’re a manmade killer governed by the government, okay? And the Bill of Rights, the Constitution, it states the government does not govern the people. We govern the government. That’s how it’s supposed to be. That’s how it’s always been. But then they want to take it off in their own little way, kind of separate things, make cops better than people. No, we’re all equal, okay? I don’t give a about the badge. I don’t give a about the gun. I don’t give a about the uniform and the car. I don’t care, okay? We’re all equal. It doesn’t matter how much money you make, how little money you make, okay. You both make money. Either one; get along or two; split ways, because otherwise if you don’t get along and you don’t split ways, you’re just going to be a rampage war path. It’s going to be ending up like Seattle or probably like Rockford, Illinois, [inaudible], Illinois or Detroit, Michigan, cops ending up getting shot up every day because of gang violence, not knowing how to defuse the situation, but knowing how to instigate the situation. That’s what the cops are doing, instigating, harassing. Okay, on the side of their car, it says, to protect and serve. There ain’t no definition on that car saying harass and serve. Protect and serve means protect your city, serve the people. It doesn’t mean harass the city and the people. ---PAGE BREAK--- Male 3: All of these people out on the streets are decent people. We all know how to get along. We all know how to fight. We know how to fight for our rights, when you push our buttons and it makes us want to fight and that’s not what we’re [inaudible words]. Besides the fact that police officers are with people out on the streets. That’s not their role. That’s not the definition of how they should be doing things. They should be protecting people, protecting; yeah, but I’m not the citizen. They don’t get paid for harassing or anything like that. They lose money doing that. The fact that they just pass out criminal trespasses, that’s just a piece of paper. [speaking simultaneously - inaudible]. Male 2: It’s only costing them money to write it, because that means they have to go [speaking simultaneously - inaudible]. That’s expensive. They have [inaudible words]. It’s costing them money; you’re right. Male 3: It’s costing us money to pay for those [inaudible words]. So again, the taxes too, taxes and fines, court fees, all of that. I don’t believe in that, okay. I don’t believe in [inaudible words]. The main thing I’m saying that okay there’s people that are out there that are messed up, okay? That’s all I’m going to say. But I’m trying to say the government, they don’t give a about anybody. They don’t give a about the homeless people. It will come to the point where they don’t even give a about themselves. [speaking simultaneously - inaudible words] because you can kill people. Male 1: You all come back and check [inaudible words]. [audio ends]