7 July 25th-July 31st, 2024 PHOENIX NEW TIMES phoenixnewtimes.com | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | FULL BAR! BILLS OF $50 OR MORE Dine-In or Take Out Not Including Combinations Dinner Only Expires 12/31/24 Closed On Tuesdays $5 OFF 2050 N. Alma School Rd., #36 • 480.857.4188 noting that Davis sometimes responds to overdose calls with lifesaving Narcan treat- ment before Mitchell can. “I know you carry that stuff on you,” Mitchell said in the video, “and I think you beat me to one over here last time, too.” Mitchell’s tone was exasperated as he lamented the unhoused community’s apparent distrust of police and his own inability to address the issue. “There’s nothing I can do as one little, one person. I mean even when I talk to these (unhoused) people, I can only do so much. I can offer resources all day, but 95% of the time they don’t even take it from me,” Mitchell said. Mitchell then walked over to speak with a group of park rangers, telling the videog- rapher to keep a distance while filming “so (the rangers) don’t get riled up.” The case continues Meanwhile, the city’s case against Davis for allegedly violating its events permit code is moving forward. On July 12, Judge Kevin Kane rejected a motion from Davis’ attorney to dismiss the case. A pretrial conference is scheduled for Aug. 14. Initially, the Sunday Picnics hosted by Davis and his organization AZ Hugs were met with acclaim by local officials, winning the city’s “Neighborhood Event of the Year” in 2022. But the winds changed — first slowly, then quickly. By November 2023, the city told Davis that he needed a permit to hold the events. When Davis requested one, he was denied because he hadn’t stopped his feedings in the meantime, according to a denial letter. As a consequence, Davis cannot apply for a permit again for a full year. On June 13, it was revealed in court that another organization, the Aris Foundation, received an events permit despite hosting events during the application period, highlighting what Davis’ attorney has called Tempe’s arbitrary enforcement of its own rules. The same day the city denied the permit, Tempe prosecutors charged Davis with six violations of the city’s special permit ordinance. Each violation is punish- able by a maximum fine of $2,500, up to six months in jail or both. Five charges were dropped temporarily, while the sixth is the subject of Davis’ trial. After Davis’ court date in May, he told New Times he was simply “tired.” He hasn’t swayed from his mission, though with an estimated 10,000 unhoused in Maricopa County, the problem itself remains gargantuan. But the more the city of Tempe hounds him, the more he has to guard against the dimming of his optimism. As a poet who still teaches a monthly poetry class at the Tempe Public Library, Davis often channels his feelings into verse. “Time and time again, when I don’t know what to do and am questioning everything, I always just write a poem,” he said. One of Davis’ poems, written since he became a target of the city and shared with New Times, reads in part: everyone’s rented a room in oblivion in a past life but this is the next life & in this life healing is lonely & beautiful & forever Targeted by Tempe from p 6 Austin Davis’ trial in Tempe Municipal Court is set to continue in August. (Photo by TJ L’Heureux) Support Phoenix New Times’ continued coverage
