The Bikur Cholim Jewish cemetery in Seattle. Image by Google Maps

(JTA) — Officials of a Jewish cemetery in north Seattle have filed a claim against the city, saying its inaction against the problems caused by the homeless living inside has cost it hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The claim for $230,000 was filed Monday by Bikur Cholim cemetery board member Ari Hoffman.

Hoffman last month told local media  that headstones have been defaced and that needles and other discarded drug paraphernalia, as well as human feces, have been found on and among the tombstones. Hoffman also said that prostitutes use the woods behind the cemetery for their clients.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

The claim is for costs associated with cleaning up the cemetery and reparing damage done by the homeless people living on its grounds.

The Bikur Cholim cemetery has gravesites going back to the Civil War as well as recent burials.

Across the street, the Historic Sephardic Jewish Cemetery is experiencing similar vandalism.

Hoffman said that pleas to the city to remove people living in RVs and tents by the cemetery have fallen on deaf ears.

“My dad is a Holocaust survivor, he’s buried in this cemetery and he doesn’t deserve this,” Fox affiliate Q-13 quoted a woman visiting the cemetery as saying.

The next step will be a class action lawsuit against the city, Hoffman said.

The nearly $230,000 has been spent on clearing woods and installing lights on the grounds to discourage people from camping there, as well as hiring people to clean up the graveyard, monitor the grounds, and deal with day-to-day issues.

Contact Alyssa Fisher at [email protected] or on Twitter, @alyssalfisher

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount