Civil Liberties Union Sues Cambridge

Harvard Square panhandlers yesterday found a defender in the Massachusetts Civil Liberties Union, which filed a suit alleging that the city of Cambridge, its police department, and the Middlesex district attorney regularly violate the free speech rights of beggars.

In the suit, the civil liberties organization charged that Cambridge is enforcing an unconstitutional Massachusetts statute that makes begging illegal, according to Jonathan Shapiro, a staff attorney with the union. The city has moved to dismiss the case, and a Middlesex County court is currently deciding on that motion.

"We think that people have a right to ask other people for donations or for charity whether it be for a cause or for their own benefit," said Shapiro. "We are in no way suggesting that they have a right to harass anyone."

Homeless people in the Square have long complained of rough treatment by area police and entrepreneurs. Au Bon Pain, the sandwich shop in Holyoke Center, has in recent years worked out an accommodation with the area homeless, who often use its outdoor tables and chairs. But Au Bon Pain's efforts are unique.

Shapiro said other Boston-area municipalities do not enforce the vagrancy law as strictly as Cambridge does. He criticized the city police for reacting to large numbers of homeless people with force, rather than sensitivity.

"I think with problems of homelessness in creasing, there has been an equal and opposite reaction by the police," Shapiro said.

But Cambridge Police Det. Frank Pasquarello said city officers often must use force because panhandlers have grown more aggressive in recent years. He said the high incidence of drug and alcohol abuse among the city's homeless make them a public menace.

Pasquarello said he was especially worried about the danger panhandlers pose to families with children, who often use the Square.

"We've always enforced the law," Pasquarello said. "The problem just seems to be getting worse, so we're stepping up our efforts."

The detective said that the civil liberties union has distorted charges of police harassment of the homeless and that a victory for the plaintiffs would compromise public safety.

"We're not going out of our way to antagonize people," Pasquarello added. "If the ACLU people win, it'll just be worse than it is now."

Pasquarello said the area homeless have no reason to beg because plenty of shelters in the area provide free food.

"Cambridge has numerous shelters for food," said Pasquarello. "It's not like someone's starving out there. The homeless just end up buying booze with the money."

City attorneys could not be reached for comment yesterday. Calls to the office of Mayor Kenneth E. Reeves '72 went unreturned, and officials in the Middlesex district attorney's office would not comment on the case.