"It's pretty much harassment - we are human beings for crying out loud," Gould told WTSP.
"Here they write you a citation then trespass you so you can't step on the property anymore and these are public places like the park, library," he added.
"Seems to be a criminal offense to be homeless in this city shouldn't be that way," Paul Lonardo, one of the other plaintiffs in the case said.
Andrea Mogensen, an attorney with the ACLU is helping to represent the homeless population of the city in the lawsuit, along with Gould and four other plaintiffs.
"The city has dumped the social problem of homelessness on the police power and asked the police department to move everyone out of the city and that is unconstitutional," Mogensen said.
According to the lawsuit, police issued citations to homeless people 608 times for lodging outdoors and 274 times for trespassing.
Sarasota Police Chief Bernadette DiPino says that the officers are ticketing and arresting homeless people for their own good.
Comment: You ticket someone who can't pay a fine and jail someone who can't afford bail. Given the violent nature of jails and the brutality of police these days, you may be handing them a death warrant. How is it for their own good?
Comment: We hope he wins his lawsuit!