Tag: Settlement Agreement

How a judge decided to leave Settlement Agreement intact

A frustrated mayor responds; an advocacy organization for the unhoused applauds ruling
by Yucheng Tang | Posted April 4, 2025

photo by Leslie Layton
The Comanche Creek encampment was removed years ago.

In September of last year, the City of Chico began another legal journey – this time an effort to exit the Warren v. Chico Settlement Agreement.

On March 31, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California denied the City’s motion, which means the City has to abide by the five-year agreement that started in 2022 and ends in 2027.

The Settlement Agreement prohibits the City from enforcing anti-camping ordinances when adequate shelter is unavailable. In planning an eviction of unhoused campers from public spaces, the City must make a count of available shelter beds, advise plaintiff counsel Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC) and notice campers who will be assessed and referred elsewhere. Some City officials consider the process unnecessarily onerous. read more

Warren Settlement Agreement left intact by federal judge

by Yucheng Tang | Posted April 1, 2025

U.S. District Court Judge Dale A. Drozd has denied the City of Chico’s motion for relief from final judgment in the case Warren v. Chico.

The case led to a settlement agreement in 2022 that prohibited the City from enforcing anti-camping ordinances when adequate shelter was unavailable. The City later sought to modify or terminate that agreement, citing changes in the law (the Grants Pass v. Johnson decision by the U.S. Supreme Court) and changed circumstances, such as public health and safety concerns.

The court order says the City failed to prove that some public safety issues, like fires and crimes, have worsened after entering the Settlement Agreement. read more

Back to court: City wants relief from Settlement Agreement

Chico leaders reject plaintiffs' proposed revisions
by Leslie Layton | Posted August 8, 2024

photo by Dave Waddell

The City of Chico plans to file a court motion next week asking for “relief” from the Warren v. Chico Settlement Agreement, an effort to give City leaders the latitude they seek to enforce anti-camping ordinances, conduct evictions and generally address homelessness.

As negotiations between the City and Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC) came to a crashing halt, the City today issued a press release that says “… with regard to the Warren Settlement Agreement itself, the City expects to file a motion to seek judicial relief” next week.

LSNC represents the homeless plaintiffs in the Warren lawsuit that was filed against this City in 2020. read more