She wasn’t violent. She wasn’t high. She wasn’t a threat.
She was just homeless, exhausted, and out of options.
In the span of less than 24 hours, Alisha McGraw made her way from the Portsmouth Police Department to a retirement home, to two hospitals, a local diner, and finally, jail—not for committing a crime, but for having nowhere else to go.
It’s a haunting snapshot of the growing homelessness and mental health crisis playing out on the streets of Portsmouth.
🚨 4 A.M. Plea for Help
It started at 4 a.m., when McGraw showed up at the Portsmouth Police Station, asking for help. She told officers she’d just been discharged from the hospital after receiving a Vistaril shot, a medication commonly used to treat anxiety.
She said she couldn’t go back to her family in Ashland, KY, had been banned from local hospitals unless she was in a medical emergency, and that the homeless shelter and crisis center had turned her away.
She wasn’t suicidal—just tired, unwell, and looking for a place to go. Officers told her to sit, rest, and wait until daylight to seek shelter.
🛏️ Retirement Center Turn-Away
But by later that morning, McGraw had wandered across town to Hillview Retirement Center on 28th Street, where she was found wearing a tie-dye robe and refusing to leave the property. Officers responded and gave her a ride back to the shelter—the same one that allegedly wouldn’t accept her earlier.
🏥 Hospital Hopping
Later in the day, she appeared again—this time at Southern Ohio Medical Center (SOMC), claiming people were threatening her. Officers noted signs of mental health struggles, but said there were no actual threats. Staff at the hospital, where she’s been previously trespassed, confirmed she’d shown up multiple times trying to stay overnight.
Final Stop: Jail
By 8 p.m., McGraw had turned up at the Malt Shop on Scioto Trail, asking staff to contact police. She left before officers arrived. But just a few hours later, at 12:30 a.m., she returned yet again to SOMC.
This time, officers arrested her for criminal trespass. She was booked into the Scioto County Jail—but only held briefly before being released back onto the street.
💡 The Bigger Picture: When Being Homeless Becomes a Crime
McGraw’s story isn’t unique—and that’s the problem.
With limited shelter space, overloaded hospitals, and tight restrictions on who crisis centers will admit, individuals like McGraw often cycle between police, ERs, and the streets until someone finally presses charges—just to get them off the property.
What Can Be Done?
👮 Law enforcement can’t fix homelessness. Officers are left managing a crisis they aren’t equipped—or authorized—to solve.
🏥 Hospitals and shelters need resources and flexibility. Many can’t keep up with the mental health needs of the unhoused population.
🏛️ Local leaders must prioritize long-term solutions, including:
- Low-barrier shelters
- Mobile crisis teams
- Mental health treatment
- Affordable transitional housing
Because when sleeping on a bench or asking for help gets you arrested, the system isn’t solving the problem—it’s just recycling it.
