homeless news stories on Newser

Awful SXSW Idea: Turning Homeless Into 4G Hotspots

Neal Colgrass — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 16:05:05 CDT

A plan to turn homeless people into 4G hotspots has digitalphiles at the SXSW Interactive Conference in Austin crying "exploitive" and "dystopian." In a nutshell, a marketing company wants homeless people to carry MiFi devices that would enable passersby to get online when their carrier service won't suffice, the Houston...

Former NJ Governor Goes Undercover as Homeless Man

Dustin Lushing — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 18:53:09 CST

A former New Jersey governor transformed himself into a homeless man and went undercover in Newark to spend the night in a shelter, reports MSNBC . "To find a place to take you if you were homeless was impossible, essentially," says Richard Codey, now a state senator. Codey heaped on make-up...

Homeless Killer Suspect Accused of 2 More Murders

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:20:05 CST

Authorities believe Itzcoatl Ocampo, the 23-year-old Iraq veteran charged with stabbing four homeless men to death in California, also killed two other people—ones that he knew. Ocampo will be charged today with the murders of Raquel Estrada, 53, and her 34-year-old son, Juan Herrera, the mother and brother of...

Homeless Man Rescued After 3 Days Stuck in Mud

Rob Quinn — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:15:00 CST

A homeless man who spent three days stuck in deep mud near the Rio Grande river in New Mexico was rescued after high school students on a field trip heard him yelling for help. Fire crews found the man stuck on a reed island and used a pulley system to...

Homeless Tour Guides Offer New Peek at London

John Johnson — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:42:21 CST

Visitors to London can get an earthier view of the city courtesy of homeless tour guides. Der Spiegel tags along as one woman ticks off facts on familiar sites such as the London Bridge, along with tidbits not to be found on more official tours: "This is where I used...

Pinkberry Founder Busted in Homeless Beating

Rob Quinn — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:23:47 CST

The co-founder of the Pinkberry frozen yogurt chain has been arrested for a savage attack on a homeless panhandler in Los Angeles, according to law enforcement authorities. Prosecutors say Young Lee and an unidentified second suspect—believing the homeless man had disrespected them by displaying a sexually explicit tattoo—beat...

Homeless Killer Suspect's Father Is Homeless

Rob Quinn — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:56:23 CST

Itzcoatl Ocampo, the California man accused of stabbing four homeless people to death , often gave money to the homeless, says his father, who is homeless himself. Refugio Ocampo, who lives in the cab of a broken-down truck, says that just a few months ago, his son gave a beggar his...

Suspect in Homeless Killings Is Iraq War Vet

Neal Colgrass — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 16:38:40 CST

A suspect detained for killing homeless people in Southern California is a mentally unstable Iraq war veteran who complained of hallucinations, the Los Angeles Times reports. When Itzcoatl Ocampo returned from service in 2010, "he was sick," his uncle says. But Ocampo never went to therapy appointments made by his...

Suspect Arrested in Homeless Serial Killings

John Johnson — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 09:39:50 CST

Another homeless man was killed in California's Orange County last night, and this time police have a suspect in custody, reports the Los Angeles Times . Authorities say the transient—the fourth such victim in a month—was stabbed to death behind a Carl's Jr. restaurant in Anaheim. Police chased down...