I reported last week on how a Sacramento judge asked Mayor Darrell Steinberg to do something about the homeless people who allegedly have sex, defecate, fight, and strip in front of the courthouse buildings daily: “When coming to court is a trial itself for victims, witnesses or even jurors,” Judge Michael Bowman said in a letter, “access to justice is threatened.”

I visited Sacramento’s Superior Court this past weekend to see for myself. Tents indeed lined the courthouse. Those occupants who were clearly under the influence of drugs made me wary of getting out of the car, which makes one wonder what entering the courthouse every day for work — or a trial — must be like. It’s unclear if police monitor the area regularly; two bike police officers patrolled nearby, but they didn’t clear tents or confiscate drugs.

Steinberg’s office said it would work with the city manager to open up Miller Park Safe Camping, which he claimed will address the encampments “surrounding the DA’s office and the courthouse,” promising that, “those areas will be cleaned.” The mayor campaigned in 2016 on resolving the homelessness crisis, and he has since been pushing “housing support systems,” which have yet to prove effective. So far, homelessness in Sacramento has increased 67 percent since 2019, even though the city increased its shelter capacity by 57 percent from 2019 to 2022. Sacramento now has a greater homeless population than San Francisco.