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Robert Gehrke: Here’s what the story of one man, jailed more than 100 times, can tell us about addiction, mental illness and homelessness

Last month, police in South Salt Lake were called to the home of a woman who said her ex-husband was creating a disturbance and refused to leave — in violation of a protective order.

When officers arrived, they found him lying on the back steps, reeking of alcohol and unable to get up. He had two bottles of vodka in his front pocket and officers took him to jail — a place he was all-too familiar with.

A few days earlier, he had been arrested for intoxication. In June, he was arrested twice — once for public urination, once for intoxication.