40 people sleep on a sidewalk outside the Covenant House on Rampart St.
Some 40 local elected officials, business and civic leaders have had a brief taste of what it's like to try to sleep on a sidewalk.
Sheriff Marlin Gusman, U.S. District Court Judge Stanwood Duval, state Rep. Walter Leger III and the president of the Whitney Bank were among those who participated in a fundraising event held at the Covenant House, a shelter for young people located on North Rampart Street.
Participants slept in sleeping bags laid on pieces of cardboard outside the shelter. They slept under the watchful eye of an NOPD officer.
