On a cold night in September 2018, Fort Collins resident Adam Wiemold had nowhere to go.

Wiemold had been homeless for two years and the only shelters for men in the area were full.

Even if they had space, Wiemold was prohibited from staying in them because he worked as a supervisor at one of the shelters and it would violate company policy.

Out of options, Wiemold drove to a designated rest stop and spent the night sleeping in his car. That night, he was woken by police officers and later prosecuted for illegal camping.

After more than two years of legal battles, the Larimer County District Court has ruled Fort Collins violated the U.S. Constitution by prosecuting Wiemold when he had nowhere else to go.

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“As a matter of basic human dignity, it is just wrong to criminalize a homeless person sleeping on public property when they have nowhere else to go,” said ACLU attorney Adam Frank, who defended Wiemold in the trial.

Fort Collins has a “camping ban” ordinance that forbids sleeping outdoors on public property, an ordinance frequently deployed against homeless residents.

During the trial, Frank argued the city was selectively enforcing the camping ban against homeless individuals without enforcing the ban for truck drivers who regularly sleep in the rest stop’s parking lot. Selective enforcement violates the 14th Amendment.

Frank also said prosecuting people for sleeping outdoors when there is no shelter available violates the Eighth Amendment which prohibits punishing an involuntary act if it is the unavoidable consequence of one’s status.

“Everyone has to sleep,” Frank said. “If someone is going through homelessness and can’t access shelter, they have to sleep outside.”

By ruling in favor of Wiemold and the ACLU, the Larimer County District Court protects homeless individuals from prosecution when shelters are full or unavailable.

In addition, ACLU said the ruling also protects those who cannot use shelters because of shelter policies.

According to ACLU, the decision should protect people who reject shelters, like couples who cannot shelter together, those with mental illnesses who can’t stay in confined spaces and those suffering from substance addiction who aren’t allowed in shelters.

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“For people in these situations, indoor shelter is not available and prosecution for sleeping outdoors is cruel and unusual punishment, in violation of the Constitution,” said Mark Silverstein, legal director of ACLU of Colorado.

Silverstein said this is the first time a Colorado appellate court has adopted this reasoning.

This ruling from the Larimer County District Court reverses the municipal court’s conviction of Wiemold, dismissing all charges against him.

“It’s great to know that I won’t have to have this on my record based on what I was going through in my life at that time,” Wiemold said. “I’m happy that this case could potentially help other people who are experiencing homelessness.”