ASHEVILLE - Jeremy Horne paced up and down a West Asheville sidewalk as commuters began their drive home from work Aug. 7. The Madison County native occasionally accepted cash or a water bottle from stopped cars at the light.

After Horne, 37, suffered severe burns at his Burger King job and had to leave a family member’s home, he has lived unhoused for about a year while burdened with medical bills, he said.

Horne and other panhandlers said they are struggling to get back on their feet amid consistent citations, court dates and even trips to jail for “flying signs,” a common term for panhandling. Horne has been cited or arrested eight times in 2025 for begging — even in places he’s legally allowed to be, records show.

“I’m trying to do it the right way, not being mean or abusive, but ri

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