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© 2021 The Somerville Times. All rights reserved.
By Jim Clark
Police were called to Community Laundry on Bow St. last week on reports that a man was sleeping on the floor.
Upon arrival, officers located the man in question, later identified as Charles Cashman, lying face down on a blanket on the floor of the laundry.
Several customers of the laundry were present as the officers confronted Cashman, according to reports.
One of the officers nudged Cashman’s boot in order to wake him up. Cashman reportedly turned over, then stood up. Police said that he immediately became boisterous and began cursing at the officers, telling them that they had no right to awaken him.
Cashman reportedly told the officers that he did not have to leave the laundry and that they [the police] did not have anything better to do.
The officers made several requests to Cashman to quiet down and leave the premises, but he reportedly continued shouting obscenities at the officers and refused to leave.
The officers then advised Cashman that he would be placed under arrest, but he reportedly struggled with them and resisted their attempts at placing him in handcuffs, continuing to shout obscenities at them as they restrained him.
Cashman was eventually handcuffed and formally placed under arrest by the officers, charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
A verbal do not trespass order was reportedly issued to Cashman by the proprietors of the laundry as he was led away.
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Is this man, homeless? If so, a more proper way to handle this would have been to tell him where else he could sleep. No? What is he supposed to do? Sleep on the sidewalk and freeze to death?…
Yes Oliver, that will help decrease the homeless population in Somerville. But seriously, this city has little or nothing to a problem that has been increasing in the last few years. We have money for so many other things but not for the homeless. Something is wrong here.
I have to agree. I think that property owners should be kicking in more to help with problems like this. Especially the rental property exploiters. They’re making a killing gouging the middle- and low-income residents while those who can’t even afford a home in this city freeze in the streets. Crazy.
Maybe they could open up a homeless shelter in the cold weather for these poor souls in the gymnasium at the high school or some unused building in the city. It is so sad.
I had often thought the Powder House school would have been a good place and would have shown we were a humane city. If you are not aware of it more cities are now allowing for tent cities for the homeless. I am sure that won’t be allowed here. With the few scraps they hand out to the homeless coalition here that hardly makes a dent in the problem. They do a great job with the little they get. Baker is the first governor that has addressed the problem to my knowledge. I hope it goes somewhere and not get lost in the shuffle.
If nothing else we need something to help people through the winter months. Let’s get this going.