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Treating the Destitute

Lonnie Whitaker, 49, was in a residential recuperation program at the JWCH Medical Clinic in Los Angeles until he was kicked out for starting a small fire while trying to put out a cigarette. The staff at the center had a different story to tell.

Lonnie Whitaker, 49, was in a residential recuperation program at the JWCH Medical Clinic in Los Angeles until he was kicked out for starting a small fire while trying to put out a cigarette. The staff at the center had a different story to tell.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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Dennis Bleakley, 63, practices medicine at the JWCH Medical Clinic in Los Angeles.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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Dennis Bleakley examines Edward Sankey, 55, at the JWCH Medical Clinic in Los Angeles. Sankey lives in a hotel.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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A person smokes crack on the 600 block of San Julian Street in Los Angeles.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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Tony Montgomery, 51, says he has AIDS and is having difficulty breathing.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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People live on the sidewalks on the 600 block of San Julian Street in Los Angeles.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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The 600 block of San Julian Street in Los Angeles is littered with trash.  (Francine Orr / LAT)

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