[2] Due to New Mexico's strong laws against loitering, sleeping in cars and begging (traits a lot of homeless people are forced to do) they are disproportionately over-represented in the prison system.
Police officials can accuse any person they believe may have attempted to disrupt the peace, regardless of whether or not the offense presents danger to the community.
The area was pejoratively nicknamed as the "War Zone" by some media and residents until 2009, when the city officially renamed it as the International District because of its diverse population and businesses.
Fentanyl and methamphetamine use is a frequent occurrence in the International District, as well as some areas adjacent to Nob Hill and Downtown.
[8] The most recent NM Point-in-Time Report by the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness on behalf of US Department of Housing and Urban Development counted 1,231 people living on the streets of Albuquerque (around 0.2% of the city's population) in January 2024.
The lawsuits alleged that the City violated the camper's constitutional rights by destroying their property and forcing them to leave without providing alternative accommodations.
[10] In 2023, Judge Joshua Allison ordered a temporary injunction which prohibited the city from destroying unhoused people's belongings during encampment closures.
[12] The Supreme Court of the United States decision on City of Grants Pass v. Johnson case further enabled local governments to continue destroying the belongings of people experiencing homelessness.
"[14] In August 2024, the town of Española, New Mexico closed an encampment of over 30 unhoused people after months of complaints from housed residents in the area following a town hall meeting on public safety with Michelle Lujan Grisham, and subsequent ordinance banning encampments on public property.
[15] The encampment was allowed to stay for an unknown period of time longer than initially reported, but after a few days, the people all disappeared.