Pie and Coffee

A man walking his dog in Green Hill Park yesterday found the body of a homeless man, the third discovered in the city in five weeks.

Ricardo Rivera, 57, was found dead in the woods near the Stanton Street area, police spokesman Sgt. Gary J. Quitadamo said.
(Telegram & Gazette, subscription required)

The number of known people living on the street has more than doubled with the approach of spring, although the weather has been fierce at times. Yesterday’s low was 18F.

Update: Telegram & Gazette:

The family of the 57-year-old man found dead in Green Hill Park Monday morning said he was not homeless and had been taking medication since he started becoming “confused.”

[…]

Mr. Rivera’s family said yesterday he had lived with them in the city for the past four years or so and had left sometime Thursday night. The family searched for him, but could not find him.

So was he officially a “missing person” at some point? The police say he was known to stay at the PIP. Did his family figure he’d just wandered off again? The newspaper story is sparse on the details.

WTAG-AM reported this morning that a homeless man, Sammy, was found dead in a car in a used car lot in Main South.

It is possible he had been dead for some time.

I didn’t hear the radio report, and it’s not on the local websites, so that’s all I know. This item will be updated.

Friday update: Samuel Acevedo, RIP. The Telegram & Gazette has the story:

Basing their assessment on the condition of the body, police and Mr. Malvey said Mr. Acevedo must have been dead for some time.

[…]

Mr. Malvey said that, in a given week, he finds three or four people seeking shelter in automobiles parked in front of the dealership.

The article confirms that Mr. Acevedo “preferred living on the street,” and that it was challenging to get him to rent an apartment or stay in a shelter.

A situation like this is frustrating. You think, “What could have been done to prevent this?” and there’s no good answer. It’s one thing if a person prefers living in cars to staying at a rough place like the PIP shelter. It’s another thing if a person prefers staying in cars to living in an apartment.