Apparently feeding the hungry and homeless in an Arizona county is a crime that can land you in prison for 4 months and fines to boot.
78-year-old Norma Thorton was criminally charged by for feeding the homeless at a park in Bullhead City, Arizona, in March of this year, per a city ordinance that forbids anyone to feed the homeless “for charitable purposes.”
Thorton was treated as a criminal and was threatened to spend up to 120 days in jail, $1,431 in fines, and up to 24 months of probation. Thorton refused to plead guilty and eventually these charges were dropped.
Last week Thorton partnered with the Institute for Justice (IJ) to fight back against the city.
The institute wrote in a press release and accompanying the video the following backstory on this arrest and court charges:
In Bullhead City, Arizona, your kindness might cost you your freedom. It nearly did for Norma Thornton, a 78-year-old grandmother who was arrested and criminally charged for feeding those in need in Bullhead City. Under a new ordinance, the city has deemed it a criminal misdemeanor—punishable by fines and even imprisonment—to share prepared food in a public park “for charitable purposes.” As the city attorney clarified, people may freely share food in public parks at “social events, which would include a party.” But be sure your “party” doesn’t include any homeless people, or you might go to jail.
That’s the city’s lesson for Norma Thornton. Norma operated a restaurant before retiring to Bullhead City in 2017. Bullhead City is a city of 40,000, neighboring the Colorado River on Arizona’s western border. In Bullhead City Community Park, Norma encountered people in need—that is, people who could barely afford housing nearby, as well as people experiencing homelessness. Though no one spends nights at the park (retreating to federal land nearby), some come together in the day in the public park, where they can take advantage of shade, benches, and restrooms. She learned that the nearest shelters and food pantries are miles away, and their resources and availability are limited, leaving dozens hungry each night. So Norma decided to use her career skills to share nutritious, hot, homecooked meals with people in the park. For more than four years, Norma would regularly bring her food to the picnic tables there, sharing with anyone who asked.
That all changed on March 8, 2022. Just as she was performing her usual cleanup of the area, Norma was arrested and criminally charged with violating the city’s ordinance. Norma refused to plead guilty as she felt she’d done nothing wrong; months later (after hearings in criminal court), the city dropped the charge—but only while clarifying that if Norma does it again, the city would throw her in jail. Now, Norma shares her food in a private alley—without shade in the scorching heat, without tables or a seating area, without a place for people to wash their hands, and out of sight of people who could use her help.
Homelessness is, of course, a complicated and serious problem. But criminalizing acts of charity isn’t the solution. What’s more, it’s unconstitutional. That’s why on October 25, 2022, Norma joined with the Institute for Justice (IJ) in filing a new federal lawsuit against Bullhead City. The lawsuit asks the court to strike down the city’s ordinance and allow Norma, and people like her, to share food in the park.
AUTHOR COMMENTARY
He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.
Proverbs 28:27
You know the country is destroyed and has gone down the toilet a long time ago when acts of charity, mercy, love, kindness, and forth; are now criminalized and outlawed. Meanwhile, the real criminals get slaps on the wrist and are allowed to run riot.
And as for the officer seen in the video making the arrest, who is more concerned about the press backlash, when does integrity come into this?
The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.
Proverbs 20:7
That’s another problem with this country: integrity is dead. When will these obedient order-followers, at least a few of them, stand up and say, ‘no more: I will not arrest this person,’ or will not carry out this directive? And then these caped crusaders with a badge marvel as to why their is so much animosity and hatred towards the thin blue line. Instead of going after ACTUAL crime, charity is made illegal.
But the cities and states do this because it is another great way to money launder and annually increase the welfare state, thereby increasing the profits of the people in power. If anyone is inhibiting homelessness, it is the state, not acts of kindness by average people.
[13] Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; [14] Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. [15] For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: [16] As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.1 Peter 2:13-16
As I have covered before, we live in a society that calls evil good and good evil (Isaiah 5:18-25), and the people in power have been criminalizing doing good things for some time. 1 Peter 2:13-16 is a passage that is to be read in tandem with Romans 13 – the infamous passage every and all pastor in the backpocket of the government lives and dies on (though has to wrest and ignore some of the verses that condemn wicked leadership).
[7] Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? [8] Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? [9] For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? [10] Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. (1 Corinthians 9:7-10).
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This so sad
You’ve gotta be kidding me!!!
If I was the chief of that police department, I’d claim their badges in a New York minute and say “no go apply for a job at Chuck E. Cheese.”
Whoever the fools are that think that kindness is weakness, you just wait until a kind and long suffering God drops the axe on your great and mighty nation of America and shows you His wrath; you’ll suck your thumbs and cry for mommy!
I never thought I would live to see any of this in my lifetime, and here it is!
Nothing is kept from the eyes of the Lord. The LORD sees everything and everyone and so vengeance belongeth to him.
Romans 12:19
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
If she’s not saved, I pray that she gets saved. There are a lot of people who are decent, bold and have character, who could be used by the Lord, if only they would choose to get saved. Unfortunately, a lot of people like her, as good as they were, because they did not submit to God, died and went to hell.
That’s the truth, sadly.
She still needs to come to repentance and the King James Bible and call upon Jesus to save her, and for sure, He will intervene for her, find her innocent and favor with the judge, and put those evil cops in their places.
Crony mob gambling casinos all over Arizona & Nevada. A lot of big money & Silicon Valley stuff, too. I hope she’s saved, too, & kudos for toughing it out in a spot less likely for the not-so-beautiful-people (looking more than skin deep & past the plastic surgery etc) to be offended & complaining about. They tempt a lot of the cops with threats to their family, as well as to themselves & to take money to look the other way. Then if they get ‘scruples’ it’s an easy matter to sell them out….and Lake Mead with all those bodies showing up is just up the road, Lake Havasu to the south. Steve Van Nattan used to minister in that general area in the ’80’s & early ’90’s, and the cartel, gang & satanic activity was already terrible. Hard to imagine what it is now….though this & the election clownshow, plus the open border gives us some indication.
Las Vegas is so blatantly evil, I’m surprised China hasn’t sent a nuke to it yet.
What other city, of all of America which is already evil, prideful, and Christ rejecting, has the boldness to nickname themselves “sin city?”
Now, If this lady was down further South at The Border giving food to the illegals coming over???
I reckon she’d be rewarded greatly and win a Free trip to The White House to eat an ice cream cone with grampa biden and then get a purple necklace.
you got that right! Old pedo Joe would give her a pat on the back
Being retired law enforcement, I will comment from that standpoint: unfortunately, the Mason-run departments have almost become the norm. You can see the blatant Mason departments in the North but that is now spreading and as kddlporter pointed out, the mob (aka Just Another Branch of the Masons) runs the show. Even if the department is not completely staffed with Masons, all they have to do is select the officer that is a new Mason and order him to carry out their plan. They will promise their protection if any backlash happens. Even in some of these so-called arrests of law enforcement that the media spews, I suggest you just go ahead and picture that officer being “arrested” and then, once indoors, immediately unhandcuffed and then led through the hallways to a back door where they exit, unharmed and paid well.