A homeless woman suing the city of Fresno over the destruction of homeless people's belongings during raids on thier camps has died just days after the lawsuit gained class-action status.
Pamela Kincaid, 51, died Wednesday after friends said she fell four floors from a hospital stairwell.
The Fresno County Coroner's Office has called for an autopsy on Kincaid, who was also assaulted a few weeks before her death, said Dr. David Hadden, the county coroner. Kincaid was hospitalized after that attack with bruises on her head and abrasions on her body and face, according to police.
Kincaid was among a group of homeless people who sued the city last year for seizing and destroying their property during the raids. A federal judge granted the lawsuit class-action status Monday, which allows other homeless people who claim their personal property was taken and destroyed by the city to join the case.
In November, U.S. District Court Judge Oliver W. Wanger ordered the city to stop taking homeless people's property while the lawsuit made its way through court.