So the Ninth Circuit (Circus?) ruled that it's unconstitutional to arrest homeless people who lounge and sleep on the street.

They ruled it's a violation of the 8th Amendment.

I'm not sure if it's "cruel and unusual" but it does seem to fly in the face of the 300 years of English-language laws that have banned sending people to debtors' prison. In short, you can't criminalize people being poor.

But, on the flipside, people sleeping on the streets is a violation of the public health and may spread disease. If public anti-smoking laws premised on restricting the spread of secondhand smoke can stand up in court, why can't laws the effectively restrict the spreading of communicable diseases carried by the homeless stand up?

But, on the flipside to the flipside, arrresting homeless people seems like a waste of police and legal resources and is just as ridiculous as arresting people for pot.