SPOKANE, Wash. — Three months after Spokane adopted a citywide camping ban, city leaders say it's not working and are headed back to the drawing board.

The law had been criticized for not being harsh enough, with many who opposed it saying it allowed unhoused Spokanites to stay on the streets and on drugs. The law focuses on outreach over citations, giving the unhoused a warning before officers can arrest or clean up an encampment

"We recognize that some of the things we’ve tried in the past just aren’t working," said Spokane Police Chief Kevin Hall.

Chief Hall says his officers have given zero citations for camping, but also have had zero success connecting unhoused campers to services as hoped. Now the city plans to amend the law to give officers more discretion in using arrests to le

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