The holiday season is a time of giving thanks, gathering with loved ones, and lending a helping hand to others. But as we enter this season of appreciation and compassion, people may unwittingly find themselves in a world of legal trouble for helping others because cities and states across the country have decided to criminalize well-meaning acts of kindness.
In Georgia, for instance, state law requires people to obtain both a cottage food license and a “food service” permit if they want to share homemade food with the homeless. People can face fines or other legal consequences if they don’t obtain these prior approvals.
And that threat of legal action isn’t empty. Norma Thorton, a 78-year-old grandmother, was arrested and criminally charged for feeding those in need in her community. In Bullhead City, Arizona, a city ordinance bans people from sharing prepared food in a public park “for charitable purposes.” After Norma learned both homeless individuals and other residents were going hungry, she decided to put her culinary skills to use and offer nutritious, hot, homecooked meals to them in a nearby city park.
In March 2022, police arrested Norma for her acts of kindness. Eventually, the city dropped the charges, but only after warning Norma that if she fed people in the park again, they would jail her.
Michael Ballard faces a similar legal nightmare. Michael and his wife, Kellie, are facing a staggering $120,000 in fines all because they allowed an employee and his family to stay at the couple’s historic vineyard after the employee lost his housing in 2013. Officials in Santa Clara, California, gave the couple an ultimatum: either remove the employee and his family—putting them on the verge of homelessness—or face daily fines. Michael and Kellie refused, so the county began fining them. Despite working to come into compliance, the county continued to fine Michael and Kellie for their act of kindness.
Well-meaning Americans shouldn’t face jailtime, excessive fines, or mountains of government red tape and fees for simply trying to help someone in need. Issues such as homelessness are complex, but criminalizing acts of charity isn’t the solution. Local governments and states should encourage Americans to create private solutions to public problems such as hunger, homelessness, and more. Enabling these private solutions allow for more people to get the help they need while also lessening people’s reliance on the government to solve every big social problem.
So, be careful this holiday season. What you might think is an innocent act of kindness could land you in a world of legal trouble—all because some communities have decided to punish well-meaning Americans for their acts of kindness.
Tell Us About Your Case
The Institute for Justice is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, public interest law firm. Our mission is to end widespread abuses of government power and secure the constitutional rights that allow all Americans to pursue their dreams. IJ has represented individuals who faced retaliatory code enforcement for public comments they made, were arrested for posting jokes about their local police departments on social media, or had baseless lawsuits filed against them because of their criticisms of government officials. If you feel the government has abused your constitutional rights, tell us about your case. Visit https://ij.org/report-abuse/.
About the Institute for Justice
Through strategic litigation, training, communication, activism, legislative outreach and research, the Institute for Justice advances a rule of law under which individuals can control their destinies as free and responsible members of society. IJ litigates to secure economic liberty, educational choice, private property rights, freedom of speech and other vital individual liberties, and to restore constitutional limits on the power of government.