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Elizabethtown Police Launch Campaign Urging Locals to Reject Panhandlers

Credit Flickr/Creative Commons/Frances Storr

The city of Elizabethtown is dealing with a major influx of panhandlers since a 2017 Kentucky Supreme Court ruling that said local ordinances prohibiting begging and soliciting on public streets are unconstitutional. 

Justices struck down Lexington's pandhandling ordinance last year, ruling that panhandling is protected speech under the First Amendment.

Officer John Thomas with the Elizabethtown Police Department says panhandlers sometimes misrepresent their situations, preying on the sympathies of other people.

"We had one case where a panhandler was collecting money for his wife who had cancer. Our police department knew for a fact that this man was not even married," Thomas told WKU Public Radio. "We've had cases where panhandlers claim they are homeless, don't have any means of transportation, and they in fact, do have vehicles and homes."

Thomas also says many panhandlers use donations to feed drug and alcohol addictions. 

The Elizabethtown Police Department is launching a public awareness campaign that will include signs around town with a website to education the public on better ways to make charitable contributions.

Lisa is a Scottsville native and WKU alum. She has worked in radio as a news reporter and anchor for 18 years. Prior to joining WKU Public Radio, she most recently worked at WHAS in Louisville and WLAC in Nashville. She has received numerous awards from the Associated Press, including Best Reporter in Kentucky. Many of her stories have been heard on NPR.
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