Honolulu Considers Fining, Jailing Homeless Over Shopping Carts
As the sun beat down in Iwilei on a recent afternoon, the wheel of a battered Costco shopping cart kept catching on gravel as an older man pushed it across the street. The cart was packed with Campbell’s aluminum…
In Honolulu, a new bill proposes fines up to $2,000 or 30 days in jail for individuals using shopping carts outside store premises. The measure aims to curb theft and abandonment of carts, which can obstruct sidewalks, bus stops, parks, and waterways. With over 2,300 homeless people living on the island of Oʻahu, the bill has sparked debate between those concerned about public nuisances and those wary of criminalizing poverty.
Shopping carts are often found within homeless encampments but occasionally abandoned by shoppers who prefer not to carry groceries. Walmart in Kapolei has even hired a man to provide a shopping cart retrieval service. Critics argue the bill disproportionately impacts homeless individuals who use carts for transporting and storing belongings, without addressing the underlying causes of homelessness.
Written by urgent.news from Associated Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
