Judge to Visit Church in Dispute on Homeless

An Orange County Superior Court judge said he will visit a controversial Buena Park church before deciding whether to order its pastor to cease housing homeless people in a makeshift shelter on the grounds.

Judge Randell L. Wilkinson will inspect the First Southern Baptist Church’s enclosed patio this morning. Typically, about 25 homeless people spend the night there.

“I intend to do some independent research, and frankly I’m interested in looking at the premises . . . to give the court an idea of what the setup is,” Wilkinson said Wednesday during a hearing on the city’s request for an injunction forcing the church to stop letting people sleep there.

City officials said the patio is not fit for habitation because it does not meet safety requirements.

City Atty. James L. Markman said homeless people had been camping on the church parking lot but recently moved to the patio, “in harm’s way.”

“We’re not trying to cause homeless people to bear more discomfort and be the ogre,” he said. But the patio has no sprinkler system for fire protection, he said, and violates a number of health and housing codes.

He described it as “flimsy construction with a lot of screens” and jammed with dozens of people’s cots and other belongings.

“If one person lights up a cigarette and a piece of clothing catches on fire, a whole lot of people are going to get hurt in there,” Markman said.

The church’s pastor, the Rev. Wiley S. Drake, did not appear in court because he was attending a Southern Baptist conference in Dallas.

His attorney, Jon M. Alexander, said the judge “is going to find what we already know exists; at worst, very minor building code violations that in no way constitute imminent danger to the people sheltered therein.”