A brutal and seemingly unprovoked attack on Easter has residents and business owners in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood demanding safer streets.
The attack happened at about 6 p.m. Sunday at the corner of Market and Castro streets. Video footage captured a man walk up and hit someone in the face, sending them to the concrete, before calmly walking away.
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WATCH HEREFrom across the intersection, Patrick McCabe witnessed the attack as he was waiting in traffic. He immediately called police while his boyfriend started shooting video of the attacker. They were concerned about the person who got hit.
"When we drove past, you could see blood on his face," McCabe said. "I don't know where it was coming from. He looked kind of stiff and maybe shaking some."
McCabe insisted on staying on the line with the 911 dispatcher to make sure police knew where to find the attacker.
His boyfriend recorded video of the man talking to a bouncer at Moby Dick bar a couple blocks away and eventually got pictures of him being arrested.
According to booking records, 34-year-old Andrew Davais was arrested and charged with several counts, including assault with a deadly weapon and for a parole violation for a prior criminal court case.
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"This is a person who's got a very long rap sheet, has committed crimes in San Francisco and other places, is violent, is living probably in a city-funded SRO," Supervisor Rafael Mandelman said.
Mandelman, who represents the Castro neighborhood, said the criminal justice system seems to have failed when it comes to dealing with the suspect in this case.
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SIGN UP McCabe said he's noticed more violence in the Castro lately.
"I live a block or two away from that location," he said. "I think things have been getting worse lately. I walk around with pepper spray all the time."
Business owners in the Castro said they've also seen a recent increase in violence in the neighborhood over the last several weeks.
The owner of Moby Dick bar said he's added extra security cameras as a precaution.
Mandelman said he believes the police department's recent efforts to clean up crime in other parts of the city are pushing some bad actors into the Castro.
"It is absolutely time for PD to be focusing on Castro," he said.
NBC Bay Area reached out to the police department about Mandelman's request for more resources but did not immediately hear back.
