[lbo-talk] Orblando Uses Decoys to Nab Beggars

[B.]

It's amazing what folks will be willing to put money
towards (in this case, the City of Orlando engaging in
publicly-funded stealth ops to bust beggars), when the
ublic is told money is tight otherwise. Pretty insane
when simply one human asking another for money is
illegal.

-B.

Michael Hoover wrote:
> Use of decoys to nab beggars draws scrutiny
>
> Mark Schlueb | Sentinel Staff Writer
> Posted August 14, 2006
>
> Orlando police are using undercover stings to nab
panhandlers downtown, a
> largely unknown practice now coming under scrutiny
as the debate over the
> homeless in the City Beautiful heats up.
>
> The city has made 186 panhandling arrests since Oct.
1, more than half of
> them resulting from "decoy teams" of undercover,
plainclothes officers who
> place themselves near a suspected beggar and wait
until they are asked for
> money, food, a cigarette or anything else of value.