Case 2:16-cv-01859-R-E Document 12 Filed 04/06/16 Page 1 of 8 Page ID #:61

1 BRADLEY S. PHILLIPS (SBN 85263)

brad.phillips@mto.com
2 MUNGER, TOLLES & OLSON LLP
355 South Grand Avenue, 35th Floor
3 Los Angeles, California 90071-1560
Telephone: (213) 683-9100
4 Facsimile: (213) 687-3702
5 MARK D. ROSENBAUM (SBN 59940)
mrosenbaum@publiccounsel.org
6 GARY BLASI (SBN 70190)
gblasi@publiccounsel.org
7 CHRISTINA GIORGIO (SBN 203061)
cgiorgio@publiccounsel.org
8 ALISA HARTZ (SBN 285141)
ahartz@publiccounsel.org
9 AZADEH M. HOSSEINIAN (SBN 306141)
ahosseinian@publiccounsel.org
10 PUBLIC COUNSEL LAW CENTER
610 S. Ardmore Avenue
11 Los Angeles, California 90005
Telephone: (213) 385-2977
12 Facsimile: (213) 385-9089
13 JOHN B. MAJOR (SBN 306416)
john.major@mto.com
14 MUNGER, TOLLES & OLSON LLP
560 Mission Street, 27th Floor
15 San Francisco, California 94105-2907
Telephone: (415) 512-4000
16 Facsimile: (415) 512-4077
17 Attorneys for Plaintiffs
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA, WESTERN DIVISION

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21 KELLY ANN ALLEN et al.,
Plaintiffs,
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vs.
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CITY OF POMONA,
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Defendant.
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Case No. 2:16-cv-01859-R-E

Stipulation Regarding Seizure of
Homeless Persons Property and to
Extend Time to Respond to Initial
Complaint by Not More Than 30
Days (L.R. 8-3)
Complaint Served: March 21, 2016
Current response date: April 11, 2016
New response date: May 11, 2016
Judge:
Crtrm.:

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30200611.1

Hon. Manuel L. Real

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Whereas Plaintiffs filed a Complaint against Defendant City of Pomona in the

2 Central District of California on March 18, 2016, Dkt. 1;

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Whereas the parties have conferred regarding whether a temporary restraining

4 order is necessary to protect Plaintiffs interests while the parties attempt to resolve
5 this case;
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The parties inform the Court and hereby STIPULATE that until May 31,

7 2016:
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1.

Defendant City of Pomona will not seize attended personal property

9 unless such property poses a serious and immediate risk to human health and safety,
10 is contraband or is evidence of a crime, as defined below. Attended property shall
11 mean property in the presence of the owner or property left by the owner in the
12 custody of another.
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2.

Defendant City of Pomona will not collect unattended personal

14 property from public areas on public property without adequate notice unless such
15 property poses a serious and immediate risk to human health and safety or is
16 contraband or refuse, in which case prior notice is not required. See Lavan v. City of
17 Los Angeles, 693 F.3d 1022, 1033 (9th Cir. 2012).
a. For purposes of this stipulation, adequate notice shall mean

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written notice of the intent by the City of Pomona to remove such

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property provided at least 48-hours prior to collection of such

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property from a public area on public property (prior notice),

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except in Lincoln Park and Washington Park where the prior notice

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shall be at least 29-hours prior to collection. The prior notice shall:

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i. Be securely attached to the property that will be collected;

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ii. State that the property tagged will be collected and stored

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unless it is attended after the expiration of the notice period;

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iii. Identify the location where such personal property may be

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retrieved;
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iv. State that the property may be retrieved on Monday through

Thursday between 9 am and 4 pm without an appointment, or

Friday through Sunday between 9 am and 4 pm with an

appointment;

v. State a phone number to call for information on how to

retrieve the property;

vi. State that no identification is required to retrieve the property

except for prescription medications;

vii. State that an owner may identify the property by location and

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contents; and

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viii. State that no consequences will attach to retrieving the

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property, including tickets, fines, or citations, and that the

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property may be picked up free of charge.

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b. Prior notice shall not be required for property which poses a serious

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and immediate risk to human health and safety, is contraband, is

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hazardous, or is refuse, and may be discarded to protect the public

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health. Property which is hazardous, poses a risk to human health or

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safety, or is refuse shall be discarded. Property which is contraband

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or evidence of a crime shall be dealt with according to Pomona

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Police Department procedures and policies regarding disposition of

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evidence.
i. Property shall not be collected as evidence of a crime to

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prove a violation of Pomona City Code section 46-601 et seq.,

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regarding Camping, Sleeping or Storage of Property.

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ii. Property collected as refuse shall be limited to items which

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are or contain spoiled food, strewn, unfolded clothing or

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bedding, and items left outside of any container or bag which

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a reasonable person would identify has having no commercial

or intrinsic value. Refuse shall not include sorted

recyclable materials with a California Redemption Value

(CRV) stored in a container or bag. Unless positing a threat

to human health or safety, items in piles, stored in suitcases,

backpacks, luggage, or other containers shall not be identified

by the City as refuse.

iii. Property which is merely dirty and otherwise does not pose a

risk to human health shall not be considered as hazardous or

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posing a risk to safety. Items soiled with human excrement or

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bodily fluids, infested with insects, vermin or vectors of

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disease shall be prima facie evidence of a risk to human

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health and safety.

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c. Due to the increased fire risk in the hills surrounding Ganesha Park

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and Phillips Ranch, and the recent history of fires in these and other

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hillside locations, Defendant City of Pomona shall remain able to

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instruct individuals in these areas that they must relocate their

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personal property out of these areas, but Defendant shall give those

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individuals an opportunity to remove their property. Defendant

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shall also remain able to collect unattended property found in fire

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danger areas without prior notice. Defendant shall post clearly

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visible signs in areas reasonably calculated to provide notice

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indicating that unattended property in those areas may be removed

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without prior notice and stored for a period not less than 90 days.

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Post-collection notice of such personal property shall be provided,

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as described below. Fire danger areas shall consist of:

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i. Hillside areas of Ganesha Park between Paige Drive, Val

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Vista Street, and Hillcrest Drive,

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ii. Open Space and Fuel Control areas of Phillips Ranch;

iii. Open space areas south of Phillips Drive (the Westmont

Hills); and

iv. Any area determined to be a high fire risk area by the Los

Angeles County Department Fire Protection Officer assigned

to the City of Pomona. For any new fire danger area

identified, the signage and outreach protocols listed above

shall apply.

d. Property collected together shall be put into containers marked with

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the date, time and location of its collection, and shall be stored by

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the City for no less than 90 days. Persons may retrieve such

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property without appointment Monday through Thursday from 9 am

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to 4 pm and by appointment Friday through Sunday between 9 am

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and 4 pm. Persons retrieving collected property must be able to

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sufficiently identify the location and approximate date of where the

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property being claimed was collected and reasonably describe the

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items collected, or otherwise be able to establish ownership. Except

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for medications, persons shall not be required to show any form of

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identification in order to claim collected property.

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e. Where personal property is found obstructing the public right of

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way preventing a path of travel greater than 36 inches wide, such

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personal property may be moved by the City without prior notice to

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allow the 36-inch wide path to be reestablished. The City shall

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make all reasonable efforts to reposition the property to clear the

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right of way so as to prevent collection of the property. If there is

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insufficient room to move such property to within 20 feet of its

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initial location those items may be collected without advance notice

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by the City. Post-collection notice of unattended removal of

personal property shall be provided as described below.

f. Where personal property collected is determined to include

prescription medication in order to protect the safety and welfare of

persons who may find such medication, such shall be collected by

the City and turned over to the Pomona Police Department for

processing to be handled by the Homeless Community Liaison, but

within 14 days Defendant shall identify a list of alternate candidates

to the Police Department for purposes of storing and processing the

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return of medications subject to this subparagraph.

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g. Post-collection notice shall be given at the time the property is

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collected and shall be in writing and provided in the following

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manner:

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1.

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Be securely attached within 10 feet of the location of the where

property was collected;

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2.

Indicate the time of removal;

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3.

Indicate the collection case number;

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4.

Indicate a phone number to call for information on how to

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retrieve the property;

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5.

Indicate the address where the property can be obtained;

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6.

State that property may be retrieved Monday through Thursday

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between 9 am and 4 pm without an appointment and Friday

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through Sunday between 9 am and 4 pm with an appointment;

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7.

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State that no identification is required to retrieve property

except for prescription medications;

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8.

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State that an owner may identify the property by location and

contents; and

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9.

State that no consequences will attach to retrieving the

property, including tickets, fines, or citations, and that the

property may be picked up free of charge.

h. Property collected from public areas on public property shall be

stored at a single City facility located within 1 mile of the Civic

Center.

3.

Defendant City of Pomona will not destroy or otherwise permanently

8 dispose of collected personal property unless such property remains unclaimed for a
9 period of 90 days.
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4.

Plaintiffs will not move for a temporary restraining order so long as

11 Defendant City of Pomona abides by the terms of this stipulation.

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5.

Defendant shall conduct outreach that is reasonably calculated to

13 inform individuals likely to be impacted by the stipulation of its terms, with

14 particular focus on provisions 2(c) and (f).
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6.

If Defendant or any of its employees or agents violates the terms of this

16 stipulation, in addition to any sanctions and fees rendered by the Court, Defendant
17 agrees to pay a penalty of $250 per individual violation. Said penalty shall not
18 constitute a waiver of any other claims arising from the conduct that violates this
19 stipulation. Such penalty shall be paid by the City to the Volunteers of America to
20 be used for providing local homeless services.
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7.

The parties further stipulate and agree to extend Defendants time to

22 answer the Complaint by 30 days.

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DATED: April 4, 2016

MUNGER, TOLLES & OLSON LLP

BRADLEY S. PHILLIPS
JOHN B. MAJOR

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By:

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30200611.1

/s/ Bradley S. Phillips

Bradley S. Phillips
Attorneys for Plaintiffs

Case 2:16-cv-01859-R-E Document 12 Filed 04/06/16 Page 8 of 8 Page ID #:68

1
PUBLIC COUNSEL
MARK ROSENBAUM
GARY BLASI
CHRISTINA GIORGIO
ALISA HARTZ
AZADEH M. HOSSEINIAN

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By:

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/s/ Christina Giorgio

Christina Giorgio
Attorneys for Plaintiffs

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CITY OF POMONA
ARNOLD ALVAREZ-GLASMAN,
City Attorney

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By:

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4846-2548-8432, v. 1

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30200611.1

/s/ Andrew L. Jared

Andrew L. Jared
Attorney for Defendant