Kelly v. City of Sausalito
- Edward Chen
- 3:22-cv-04671
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Kelly v. City of Sausalito, Judge Chen granted fee-waiver status but denied without prejudice Kelly’s request for emergency and preliminary relief.
Robyn Kelly and the City of Sausalito and its agents; the order also directed the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants.
What happened
In Kelly v. City of Sausalito, Robyn Kelly asked to proceed without paying court fees and sought an emergency order preventing the closing of the Marinship Park encampment. She said closing the camp could lead to her arrest for unlawful daytime or overnight camping.
The court granted Kelly’s fee-waiver application and ordered the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants. It denied without prejudice her request for an emergency order and preliminary injunction because the City appeared to have found her a place at the Muir Woods Lodge. The court said the situation could be reconsidered if she no longer had temporary or permanent housing.
Judge Edward M. Chen also noted that requests for hearings by video were handled through the court’s usual practice for civil cases. The order resolved the listed applications and motions.
The detailed version
- Kelly v. City of Sausalito · No. 3:22-cv-04671
- Edward Chen
- Aug. 22, 2022
Background
The court considered three pending matters: Robyn Kelly’s application to proceed without paying court fees, and her motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction. Kelly objected to the planned closing of the Marinship Park encampment. She asserted that after the closure she would likely be arrested under Resolution No. 6009 for unlawful daytime or overnight camping.
The opinion states that Kelly raised a claim involving Martin v. Boise, a Ninth Circuit decision concerning criminal penalties for homeless people sleeping outdoors on public property when no alternative shelter is available. The court also stated that the City appeared to have found Kelly a place at the Muir Woods Lodge.
Rulings
The court granted Kelly’s application to proceed without paying court fees. Because she raised a claim implicating Martin v. Boise, the court ordered the U.S. Marshals Service to serve her summons and complaint on the defendants.
The court denied without prejudice Kelly’s motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction. A temporary restraining order is an emergency request for short-term court relief; a preliminary injunction is an order that can remain in place while a case proceeds. The court did not grant either form of relief at that stage.
Reasoning and Other Matters
The court explained that Kelly appeared to have an alternative housing situation at the Muir Woods Lodge. It stated that if that situation changed and Kelly lacked temporary or permanent housing, the City and its agents should remain mindful of the principle discussed in Martin v. Boise.
To the extent Kelly requested hearings by video, the court stated that video hearings were the current practice for the court’s civil cases. The order disposed of Docket Nos. 2, 4, and 5.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.