CLAYTON 鈥 Thomas Crees, an officer with 狐狸视频 County police, avoids judgment as he works with people living on the streets.
Sometimes they may seek his help, but other times they鈥檙e wary of talking with police. They sometimes have a mental health disorder or substance abuse problem. Sometimes they don鈥檛 want any help at all, content in their routine without a permanent address.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not my place to tell people how to live their life,鈥 Crees said.
Some of the homeless Crees meets are like he once was 鈥 struggling, hustling to make money, determined to get out of a dire situation. Crees, who was recently appointed the police department鈥檚 homeless outreach officer, was himself once homeless, sometimes sleeping in his car or outside, occasionally crashing on friends鈥 couches.
鈥淔or me it鈥檚 a little more personal,鈥 Crees said. 鈥淚 can relate and understand what it鈥檚 like to lack the security a house provides. I can relate differently to feeling almost helpless.鈥
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Crees joined the department in 2015 and started in the newly created homeless outreach position in December, as part of the Crisis Intervention Unit. The officers in the unit are trained to handle mental health crises. A little more than half of the county鈥檚 police force has gone through crisis intervention training, which the county has been using since 2003.
Sgt. Gary Robertson, who heads the unit, said he asked police Chief Mary Barton to create the homeless outreach job when he noted the number of calls the county received relating to the homeless.
鈥淲e might get a call for service that somebody who looks homeless is panhandling, somebody homeless is living in a park or public area, and we get requests to check on them,鈥 Robertson said. 鈥淲hy wouldn鈥檛 I pitch to our chief of police and board and say, 鈥榃e receive X amount of calls for service monthly (about) homeless individuals in crisis, why not have for the first time a designated homeless outreach officer whose job it is to just build that relationship and that trust?鈥欌
Crees connects people with resources for housing, food, employment and treatment, if they need it. Crees says he wishes he鈥檇 known about all of the options available to the homeless that could have made his life easier years ago, when he couldn鈥檛 afford rent.
鈥淚鈥檓 really trying to talk to them to see what鈥檚 going on, since it鈥檚 cold outside, how they鈥檙e staying warm, how they鈥檙e getting fed,鈥 Crees said. 鈥淒o they have a valid ID? If they don鈥檛, I can begin that process of telling them, if they鈥檙e interested in getting one, about the resource guide I have. I work really well with an organization in the city who helps people get their birth certificates and IDs going. I can help in terms of housing and job placement 鈥 I鈥檓 more of a helper, a connector.鈥
Crees is 30 years old and a Michigan native. He worked in the Army in Tennessee as a sergeant in the 101st Airborne Division. When his infant daughter moved with her mother to 狐狸视频, Crees moved to the area to be near her. He got a job as a security guard making $10 an hour. His pay wasn鈥檛 enough to cover both child support and rent, he said, so he chose to pay child support while sleeping in his car out of a 鈥渕oral obligation鈥 to his family. He was homeless for most of 2014.
鈥淵ou can only sleep in a car for so long before it starts to hurt,鈥 Crees said.
The air conditioning in his Jeep didn鈥檛 work, so during warmer nights he slept in the park across from 狐狸视频 City Hall, keeping an eye on his Jeep parked nearby. He donated plasma to pay for food and a gym membership that allowed him to shower, shave and iron his clothes. He tried street performing with a yo-yo, he said, but that didn鈥檛 go well.
It was humbling, Crees said. Crees鈥 daughter sometimes couldn鈥檛 visit him because he couldn鈥檛 provide her with a safe environment. Someone once smashed the window of his Jeep while he was sleeping inside.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to understand where (the homeless) are coming from unless you鈥檝e lived it,鈥 Crees said. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 have to be permanent.鈥
Crees鈥 life now is much more secure and comfortable than it was a few years ago, but his former struggles fuel his commitment to this new role. Crees is on call 24/7 and said he intends to pick up the phone or drive out to a homeless encampment whenever he鈥檚 called upon.
鈥淪o if an officer comes into contact with someone sleeping outside and it鈥檚 10 degrees out, they can contact me at 2 in the morning or whatever, and I鈥檒l find the best place to take them,鈥 he said.
Crees said that when he walks into a homeless encampment, he is also prepared to do a lot of listening to a group of people who are used to being ignored and resented. His objective, he said, isn鈥檛 to arrest anyone just because they are struggling.
鈥淚 am a police officer, but I鈥檓 not your typical police officer,鈥 Crees said. 鈥淢y job is 100% service. Unless you鈥檙e wanted for murder, man, we can work something out.鈥
Rachel Rice • 314-340-8344 @RachelDRice on Twitter rrice@post-dispatch.com