The Supreme Court heard arguments today on whether ticketing homeless people is "cruel and unusual" and violates the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution.

City and state officials across the country are closely watching the case, which will decide whether the homeless have the right to camp in public places. People who live in those encampments are also following the case, as they are concerned about efforts to criminalize the population rather than build shelters and affordable housing.

The case is the City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, which was brought by several involuntarily homeless people in Grants Pass, Oregon, who challenged the city's ban on "public camping."

Justice Sonia Sotomayor grills Grants Pass, Oregon's attorney, Theane Evangelis, why city officials want to enforce criminal penalties for the unhoused.

Devon Ombres, the Senior Director of Courts and Legal Policy at the Center for American Progress spoke with Roland Martin about this complexed case.

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