Homeless Encampment

28-Year-Old Man Critical After Stabbing at Parkway Homeless Camp

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A 28-year-old man was hospitalized in critical condition Tuesday night after someone stabbed him inside the homeless camp on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, according to police.

The man was stabbed once in each of his legs and once in the back of his head just before 8 p.m., near 22nd Street and the Parkway, Philadelphia Police said in an email.

Medics took the man to Jefferson University Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.

Police were initially unsure where the stabbing occurred but detectives later learned it happened in the camp.

There was no weapon recovered and a suspect has not been apprehended.

The Parkway camp was the first to form this summer as activists called for permanent affordable housing. Other camps formed behind the Museum of Art and near the headquarters of the Philadelphia Housing Authority.

The city posted eviction notices at the camps but people have not left their tents. Mayor Jim Kenney has said using force would be a last resort, and would rather get people into city services.

One of the protesters' talking points is that they've lost confidence or have had a bad experience with those services. At rallies, camp residents have said they prefer the situation to a homeless shelter, sleeping alone, or asking for money on the street.

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