17 ARRESTED AT DISTRICT BUILDING

Seventeen persons were arrested yesterday after they blocked traffic briefly in front of the District Building while protesting a D.C. Council proposal to amend a law that guarantees homeless people overnight shelter.

The protesters, carrying placards and chanting, "Hey, hey, ho, ho, the D.C. Council has got to go," said they wanted to preserve the provisions of Initiative 17, a five-year-old law that entitles any homeless people in the District a place to sleep for the night if they request it, no questions asked.

Four of those arrested were charged with unlawful entry after they occupied the office of council member H.R. Crawford (D-Ward 7), a sponsor of the proposed amendment. The others were cited for disorderly conduct.

The amendment, which was introduced by council member Nadine P. Winter (D-Ward 6) in February, and is being evaluated by the Committee on Human Services, would require a homeless person who wanted overnight shelter to demonstrate residence in the District for six consecutive months prior to application.

In addition, the legislation would establish a registration process, under which homeless applicants would be asked to provide a detailed written statement of their employment history, physical and mental health, and credit background.

A spokesman for Winter said the bill is aimed in part at making the financially strapped District less attractive to nonresident homeless people who are lured here by the promise of shelter.

"We want to limit the population of homeless people coming in and take care of the ones we have who are D.C. residents," spokesman David Watson said.

Harold Moss, a member of the Community for Creative Non-Violence, which called the protest, said his group will continue to protest proposals to change Initiative 17.

"As long as they keep trying to change the law, we will keep coming back," he said.

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