Majority says police should do more to clean L.A. streets clogged with homeless camps, Times poll finds

With tens of thousands of people sleeping outside every night in L.A. County, one of the most contentious debates is over what to do about homeless encampments and who should do it.

A new poll conducted for the Los Angeles Times and the Los Angeles Business Council Institute found that a sizable majority of voters countywide think law enforcement should assume a larger role, despite court rulings and settlements limiting such involvement.

In total, 65% of respondents agreed that police should be more involved in cleaning up the streets “in order to address the health crisis that is mounting due to unsanitary conditions caused by homeless encampments.” Similarly, 63% agreed that homeless people “shouldn’t be allowed to degrade residential neighborhoods or block access to offices and commercial buildings, so police departments should prevent people from sleeping on the street.”

Of the 901 registered voters surveyed countywide, 39% said they “strongly agreed” with each of those statements.