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This homeless camp on the bank of Johnson Creek along SE Flavel St. was cleared by police, inmates and ODOT crews in early October.

(Oregonian file photo)

A group of homeless people,

on the bank of Johnson Creek along Southeast Flavel Street near 92nd Avenue in October, filed a

against the Oregon Department of Transportation and Multnomah County on Tuesday.

The

requiring the state transportation agency to provide between 10 and 19 days' notice before removing a homeless camp. The suit also claims ODOT and county officials ignored protocols in place to remove and store personal property from the camps.

According to ODOT, the agency posted signs on September 30 saying it planned to remove trespassers and “stop degradation of the Johnson Creek fish habitat on the site.”

Portland police removed trespassers from the property, and inmate crews from Multnomah County jails helped with the cleanup, which took three days.

The suit, filed by five homeless people removed from the camp, claims the defendants violated their constitutional rights to due process and unlawful search and seizure. They have requested a jury trial and “equitable relief and damages” for themselves and others rousted from the camp.

The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys with the

, which, according to its website, “provides free civil legal services to low income individuals.”

Law center attorney Monica Goracke said some of the people who lived in the camp didn't even know the sweep was coming.

"It's devastating to lose all your stuff,'' she said.

told The Oregonian the camp is cleared out about half a dozen times a year but that the solution is fleeting. ODOT can't prevent the homeless from re-setting up camp after the 19-day mark.

"There are people who move in hours after we're done," Hamilton says. "They're waiting across the street."

After the sweep, ODOT detailed damage to the site in an

that found: the water in Johnson Creek contaminated by people bathing, washing clothes and defecating; a rock dam blocking fish migration; trees and other vegetation had been removed; and the stream bank damaged and strewn with garbage and human waste.

After the sweep, Hamilton said workers found human waste, hypodermic needles and other dangerous debris. Personal belongings were bagged and tagged, then held for at least 30 days by ODOT so the owners could retrieve them.

Crews also put up fencing to secure the area and keep the public out.

Dave Thompson, an ODOT spokesman, declined to comment on the suit.

-- Stuart Tomlinson