Federal Judge Says San Francisco Can’t Clear Homeless Camps

Supporters hold signs at a news conference held by the Coalition on Homelessness at the front steps of Oakland's federal courthouse in Oakland, Calif., on Dec. 22, 2022. Salgu Wissmath/San Francisco Chronicle via AP

SAN FRANCISCO—A federal judge has temporarily banned San Francisco from clearing homeless encampments, saying the city violated its own policies by failing to offer other shelter.

Magistrate Judge Donna M. Ryu in U.S. District Court in Oakland granted an emergency order Friday night that bars the city from taking away tents and confiscating the belongings of encampment dwellers, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.