I’m so sorry this happened to you!
I witnessed this woman attack two other people in line for OEB around 11:20am. The police were called and took statements from both victims. I’m sure it would be worthwhile to add your statement to the record
At minimum they can make a report that can then be used as tangible data to build up policies as these issues are dealt with.
Sure its all doom and gloom, but at least we can give people who make an effort all the tools we can to try to sort things out.
Yeah. But I don't get why the police makers can not see the issues.
It feels like they don't live in the same city and never step their foot on the ground...
If the police go after that woman, they will be criticized.
If they do nothing, they will be criticized.
OP was being attacked.
Everyone suffers.....
The reality is that the police are just doing dirty work, and there is nothing they can do, while those who should be responsible for this never face consequences (I am not talking about the woman or homeless people).
They take this stuff seriously. I had a guy try and attack me with a broken bottle a couple years ago on Hillside and Douglas because I rode my bike through the old Volvo lot and he was passed out in the back - it was his “turf”. Anyways, he made it about a block up Douglas towards the shelter before he was in handcuffs.
There will be camera footage from a nearby business they can likely pull. The officers are usually pretty familiar with the “regulars”, I’m sure they will recognize who it is.
Call Victoria police and start a police file. If you can describe the area and details around this individual it could help. She should be charged with assault but she likely won't.
At this point I'd be more concerned with the welfare of her child, and the one that's likely going to be born with fasd.
This was an older (50's?) woman, and the person who also had a child and was pregnant was the one who helped me (not the attacker).
I will do my best to file a report and share the details with them, thank you!
Oh sorry i didn't read that as thoroughly as i should have. Regardless this person should not be on the street. They're obviously unwell and a threat to public safety.
Was she quite skinny? If it's the woman I am thinking of, I see her quite a bit down town. She's quite unstable and will go from zero to 100 for no discernable reason.
I am so sorry to hear it happened to you. It's sad how many unstable people we have downtown. It's scary for people minding their own business and suddenly get accosted by these people and it is cruel that they are just left on their own with no hope of getting the help they need
Help her ? Who's going to help her? What do you think anyone can do for her? About the only thing VICPD will do, if they even bother to do anything, is haul her up to RJH where she will sit for a few hours till they discharge her. There's no help for people like her in this city.
No one can do anything about it you do report it either. No one can really do anything at all. Doing things requires money and time and political will, and there is none of that available in Victoria.
So the police can’t enforce the law? They can investigate an alleged assault? They can’t detain a suspect? The crown can’t press charges? The judge can’t sentence them? Jails can’t keep them? Social services can’t assist them?
Why not?
I think it's more of a police arrest her, and suggest charges to the crown, then either:
They agree on the charges and she's probably released before her trial
They don't go forward with the charges and she's totally free
They agree on the charges and convince the judge she'll remain a threat to society if released on bail.
The odds of option 3 happening seem relatively small, and also our jailing system is overbooked so even if convicted she'll be out way too soon.
Ok thank you for your response. It sounds informed so I’ll assume this is it. Ugh. I’m tired of reading ‘hands are tied’ though. Cops should keep arresting even if it’s somewhat futile. At least then they can show the blame does not lay with them. Drug addiction aside (I’m not informed enough), violence should t be tolerated at all.
Because the police have limited resources and social services has limited resources, and the consequences of the encampment are not a priority for using those resources unless something catches on fire.
I'm not saying that's good or that I agree with it. I'm saying that's what is actually happening here in Victoria. Email or call the Victoria city government if you want change. Start a petition. Get some signs and all your friends and protest outside the government building. No one does that though.
Protecting the wealthy and their property. Literally everything else is secondary. Just look at their extreme reluctance to do ANYTHING about wealthy criminals. Anything at all. In the USA, a wealthy man confessed to assaulting women on national TV and confessed to sexually harassing teenage girls in a magazine interview. You think even a single cop knocked on his door? You can find stuff like this all around the world.
Its law enforcement according to race and/or social status. If you are either homeless or not white you don't get locked up no matter what you do or how many times you do it. Trudeau's bill c-75 needs to be repealed, and a better directive issued for the courts to follow.
Not really, we could actually greatly reduce the instance of this with minimal money and time.
There’s plenty of tax paying, law abiding citizens who would be more than happy to disincentivize this kind of anti-social behaviour. All we would have to do is alter the laws around self defence and defence of other victims. Make them something close to reasonable. It would really only take a few months of consequences to put these people in their place and increase safety and civility. The only thing we lack to make this happen is political will.
I think it would be a good idea to report to police tomorrow. I'd also really recommend that you get a handful of sessions of support from Victims Services. It can take some time for trauma impacts to show up and it's way better to proactively get help now 💚
Write an email to yourself with the facts of what happened and a description of the attacker and Good Samaritan. It’s good to do this while it’s fresh in your mind.
That crazy woman was a total menace on Yates Street (in the block between Quadra and Blanshard) for probably close to an hour this morning (11-12pm). She struck 2 of my friends before leaving the front of OEB to harrass more people near the Yates St Market.
Last we heard, the cops came and took her away, but we literally saw her walking again on Blanshard/Yates at 4pm... She's right back out and ready to rage at more unlucky people.
Oh no :( I'm so sorry. Are your friends okay? I can't believe so many people were attacked this morning! She attacked me at approx 11:30 after we had left OEB.
Just so you know I was attacked by said woman today as well, same with another person that was right beside me. She was very verbally abusive. She came right up behind me and hit me in the back a few times and fled down the street on Yates towards Blanshard. I hate how this happened to you as well. But we alerted authorities and she has been arrested shortly after.
Though one of my friends said they saw her walking down the street not long after with a coffee in her hand. I just hope she gets the treatment she needs. And I hope you’re doing okay too
I work at SaveOnFood Pandora, I see these encounters all the time. And there's nothing you can do differently.
Mental illness is a serious issue among the homeless, and it occasionally leads to erratic and unpredictable behaviour. There is no way to know what will set someone off. Just tonight, some guy went and screamed at the customer service counter. No one was working there at the time... This guy just needed to yell at the spectre of customer service; then came and screamed in my face. Keep in mind I hadn't said a single word to him yet. Less than half an hour later, another dude started spitting on people, and the police had to come and arrest him. A few weeks ago, a guy was screaming and swearing at two teenage girls who worked in the front end -- and one of them was doing textbook de-escalation, and it didn't help.
So yeah, there's nothing you can do differently. Doing things differently is just as likely to be what sets someone off. Don't second guess yourself, you *know* you didn't do anything wrong. This stuff just happens, and will keep happening until BC starts a *serious* anti-poverty program that actually deals with root causes.
They started building it in 2018, long before there was a single tent in front of Our Place. At that time it was an up-and-coming neighbourhood with several condo towers being built nearby, so it seemed like an ideal location.
Time of day is important. I used to walk to work along Pandora and it was bad a decade ago.
Very few tents right there, but on the grass from time to time. Mostly it was people milling about, passed out, etc.
Market On Yates is literally two blocks away...
The problems are generally small. The store has security guards, and they are usually very good at de-escalating.
Yes, it's VERY busy. The store was built before the construction boom started downtown, and the number of apartment buildings in the blocks adjacent to the store is doubling. We can't handle all the customers we get NOW, and there will be a lot more in the next year as those apartments fill up. And there is nowhere to expand the SaveOn. Market on Yates is expanding at some point when Harris Green gets redeveloped, but downtown really needs another grocery store.
I used to live in the building beside that save on foods. I’m a physically fit young guy and even I was afraid walking around. I can’t imagine being a woman, let alone a pregnant woman. They need an office literally parked on that block 24/7 no questions asked. I was harassed a few times, but only ever verbally.
Cops will **never** post full time officers there because then they would either have to do something about it all or let the public see them doing nothing. And they don’t want either of those things.
I mean, the root cause of these interactions is that there’s people with mental illnesses so severe they can’t function in society ambling about downtown, frequently exacerbated by drug induced states of psychosis.
There’s never going to be a “root cause” solution to people with non-functioning mental illness. It’s a possible state of the human condition, which means it will always be present at some frequency of the population. So if we’re talking about the real “root causes” of why those specific people with those specific conditions are in those specific places having those specific, traumatizing interactions with the general public, it’s that we don’t confine them in institutions such that they can’t be out on the street screaming at imaginary customer service clerks.
So I’d love to talk about solving that root cause. Let’s bring those institutions back and make sure the legal framework exists in the charter to keep people who need it in them until a panel of doctors is convinced they *won’t* end up ambling about Pandora screaming at or randomly attacking people.
Or for a fraction of the price of institutionalization, they could be given homes and have support workers visit them regularly. People's mental health always improves when they have their own safe space to exist in.
An institution is a home, staffed by support workers.
We have seen exactly what “supportive” housing can turn into when it’s filled with people in the darkest throes of whatever put them on the street in the first place. A person like the woman described in this interaction doesn’t need a “support worker”. She needs someone else, preferably a psychiatrist, to make every decision about where she physically is and what drugs & medication she does or does not consume until she is stable enough to move on to a less intensive supportive housing situation. Depending on what’s wrong with her, that may in fact never happen.
If you’re at the point of attacking strangers on the street, a stat funded apartment and a twice weekly visit from a “support” person is not going to cut it.
Truely supportive housing wouldn't be "twice weekly visit", it would be multiple times a day and an ongoing relationship with social workers help the person normalize and learn to function. The problem is the half-assed approach where people get dumped in an apartment with minimal support or none at all.
If you think people are getting regular support in institutions, you are sadly mistaken. Normal is therapy once a week, medication every night, and then getting kicked out when they need the bed for someone else.
Well here it’s actually none of those things because we don’t really have any institutions anymore. But I’ll be honest what you just described seems like a massive, ‘OMFG why aren’t we doing that?’ Improvement compared to the status quo. For everyone. At least this lady would be getting medication and therapy once a week and she wouldn’t be assaulting anyone waiting in line for breakfast.
It really sounds like you’re arguing that as a society, it either has to be perfect, or nothing.
No, I'm comparing two different solutions -- one is cheaper, more effective, more humanizing, safer, and has been proven superior in study after study. The other has solution is institutions.
You've clearly never seen the inside of an institution. They are hellish. They are not a home, any more than the ICU of a hospital is a home.
A person can live in supportive housing and still have psych nurses visit daily to help them.
The same thing that happens when anyone else goes out and assaults people. Most assaults in Victoria are committed by housed, healthy people. If you want to lock people up preventatively, start with them.
No one -- literally no one -- is suggesting that there be no consequences or accountability. But unless someone has committed a real crime, it is cheaper and safer and more effective to treat them at home.
I think you people assume that institutions are the cheap affordable answer, but they are actually much more expensive than supportive housing. Keep that in mind when you get pissy about goverment-funded apartments.
We could immediately make the situation better with some legal tweaks.
There’s plenty of tax paying, law abiding citizens who would be more than happy to disincentivize this kind of anti-social behaviour. All we would have to do is alter the laws around self defence and defence of other victims. Make them something close to reasonable. It would really only take a few months of consequences to put these people in their place and increase safety and civility. The only thing we lack to make this happen is political will.
It would be an effective stopgap measure. You said it yourself, de-escalation doesn’t always work.
We *could* immediately make the situation better with some legal tweaks.
There’s plenty of tax paying, law abiding citizens who would be more than happy to disincentivize this kind of anti-social behaviour. All we would have to do is alter the laws around self defence and defence of other victims. Make them something close to reasonable. It would really only take a few months of consequences to put these people in their place and increase safety and civility. The only thing we lack to make this happen is political will.
It would be an effective stopgap measure. You said it yourself, de-escalation doesn’t always work.
I really do appreciate this and the time you took to gather info for me. Thank you 💜
I am O.K, but still having a hard time replaying the event in my head. I am just happy that my baby is safe in my belly and that my toddler wasn't with me at the time. I would be devastated if she had been in the attack.
This is great information, thanks.
> simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
This is the frightening thing: Yates at Blanshard didn't used to be a bad part of town. Neither did Douglas at View, or Yates at Government (stabbings). I don't feel safe anywhere downtown now. Twice a day on weekdays I commute through it, switching buses but I don't go window-shopping anymore in my free time.
The police aren’t able to do anything anymore. Thanks to the bail reform bill in 2019 they can’t hold them. Look at the man who tried to carjack two days in a row and home invasion on the third day within this week. Police recommend no bail but the judge just releases. We’re purposely being sent to purge at this point. I feel so bad for the officers unable to do their job, or rather having to do the same job over and over again with the same people. It must be infuriating.
Yikes, I’m glad you are okay. I had a similar experience in my city (Calgary) where a homeless woman randomly came up to me and punched me in the face while I was walking by the train station downtown. I approached some security guards afterwards who were able to hold her for smoking on the platform, who called the police. The police asked me if I wanted them to press charges and I said yes. Anyway, a few months later I called the cop who was in charge of my case because I hadn’t heard anything. Turns out everything was on camera and she actually did end up going to prison for it. I did not have to go to court or anything. I suspect if you were in a public place where there’s higher crime, it was likely caught on camera as well, not to mention the people who witnessed it. Definitely tell the Victoria police!
I'm so sorry this happened to you, it's truly a terrible situation. I think it's a great idea to report it to the police...I hope you're safe and this incident doesn't affect you further (psychologically speaking). I had a friend that got attacked very similarly by a homeless man and wasn't able to leave home afterwards for a month. I thing doing it may help you get some sort of closure.
I’m so sorry this happened to you. You said she appeared to be in her 50s. Did she have long, straight white/grey hair and a sort of smoker’s voice? I was followed, heavily cussed out, and recorded by an older woman a few weeks ago. Very unnerving.
I'm so sorry that happened to you, are you okay?
I can't be 100% sure since some time has passed, but I do think she had shorter dirty blonde hair, and I was a bit thrown off as it looked like her upper lip had been injected with botox at some point. Heavy smokers voice as well, though.
Hmmmm. Probably a different woman. We do have a large selection downtown denizens at the ready to throw, scream, spray, and stab. I work on Pandora so honestly I’m pretty used to it. I can’t imagine how scary it would have been with your kiddo there.
Absolutely report it. I had a similar thing happen at Crystal Pools last year in the change room. A woman accused me of laughing at her, said I was working with her bf or something to take away her kids.
I am so sorry this happened to you.
I had someone start yelling at me on the sidewalk on Blanshard and she ended up pushing me into traffic. Thankfully no cars coming. It was deeply traumatic.
A lot of folks on this thread seem willing to just let it keep happening and grumbling that Vic PD won't do anything. Alright, that may be the case, but you call it in anyways. If you guys are big on reform then get it on public record. If City Hall loves one thing it's metrics, and if dispatch is getting swamped with calls concerning the same troublemakers downtown assaulting people then they're going to have to deal with it.
Yeah, it's not ideal, but it's better than throwing up your hands and doing nothing about it while hoping for something to change at the top.
How scary. Nothing you really could have done differently - as someone who lives downtown, just about everyone walks by and ignores the people talking to themselves without issue. You could not have predicted what she would get triggered by nor can you typically reason with people in this state.
I’m sorry this happened to you; hopefully you’re doing okay. A similar unprovoked assault happened to my wife several months ago corner of Yates/Gov’t. Definitely call the police and file a report.
We don’t go downtown much anymore…
I would absolutely report it to police ASAP while the incident is still fresh in your mind. I'm really sorry that you had this scary encounter, and you didn't do anything wrong.
Victoria is going to shit. I was just walking to my car and had some guy wearing all black and a face mask w his hood up start speed walking towards me and my car and I had to book it inside and just when I got in and locked it he was at the rear of my car. Then just waived at me well I booked it tf out of there.
I'm sure I've shared the story on this sub before, but here it is again as a word of warning.
A couple weeks after moving to the city I was walking along the harbor around 4:00 p.m. killing time before going to the IMAX. A guy on a bike with a Boombox started following me, offering me drugs which I declined, but he continued trailing behind me. I started walking right in the heart of downtown just to get some eyes on me, and he must have followed me for eight blocks or so.
Finally I noticed that he had left me alone, so I started making my way to the theater, and not a minute later I was struck behind in the head by a short homeless woman. Had her fists up, continued kicking and punching at me as I backed up. I end up walking directly into the middle of an intersection just to get eyes on me. I also noticed that the guy on the bike who's following me was standing across the street with about six other homeless dudes all watching the interaction intensely.
After a couple minutes of her yelling obscenities at me, and me yelling at her to get the f*** away from me, she ended up crossing the street and met with the other guys, in which they all followed me for another four blocks until I managed to get on a bus.
I know for a fact that if I had laid a single hand on that woman, they all would have crossed the street and absolutely pummeled me, and probably robbed me to.
What was equally disturbing to me though is how unwilling a single person on that sidewalk was to help me out. At least two dozen people witnessed the entire thing if not more, but people are afraid. I can't believe that anybody downtown could see a pregnant woman being attacked and not immediately jump in, I have to admit that really left a bad taste in my mouth for the city. I'm so sorry you had to go through that
I'd report this to local media too. There needs to be greater awareness of how bad things have gotten especially since decrimalization of drugs. People openly shooting up all over. It's truly scary and dangerous as people who uses drugs especially with underlying mental illness are volatile.
I'm so sorry this happened to you . These people should not be on the streets and should be institutionalized. It is not fair or just that the public has to deal with these violent individuals because our governments on all levels have dropped the ball for so many years.
Empathy for criminals comes at the expense of empathy for the innocent. It's frustrating that nothing is being done about these constant attacks, and I say this as someone who lives downtown and witnesses and hears these kind of events constantly.
I might’ve had an experience with this same woman like a month ago. I was pushing my son in his stroller on government st. at like 6pm.
She was ranting about being sexually assaulted, then, luckily from a distance, started calling me a bitch who stole her baby. I was alone, so quickly ducked in a building. Pretty scary to think what could’ve happened.
Report it and take it a step further - send emails to Victoria city council, Adrian Dix and David Eby. At some point someone needs to start listening and dealing with getting unstable, addicted, mentally challenged people into proper care. Oh wait- we’d need proper facilities. Perhaps they can start there.
I’m so sorry this happened to you!
Downtown Victoria is an absolute disaster and should be avoided at all costs. It's just to risky to go down there, plus you don't know what these people are truly capable of. You should definitely report it to the police!
I gather you creeped my comment history,
I landed there because its the closest airport, spent a few days there for my dad estate and memorial, but no I spit my time between outskirts of CDMX and a town with no connection to tourism aside from they grow a lot of agave for the tequila market there.
Latin countries do a much better job of taking care of each other, especially within the family, and taking care of themselves (any way they can). They don’t rely nearly so much on the government, because they have no faith in the government. With good reason.
Edit: that’s in no way a knock on those here that are struggling. We are all to some degree products of our environment.
OP I am so sorry this happened to you- and I really encourage you to speak to a counsellor to debrief about this if you are able to.
There’s a lot to unpack in that encounter. I hope you have someone you can speak to 💜
I'm really sorry that happened to you, that would be terrifying. You asked if there's anything you could have done differently. Probably not, probably your instincts were good. It's a pipe dream if anyone thinks they can talk someone down from acute psychosis and aggression in an instant. Just make space, protect yourself and try to get help.
The only thing I can think of is a courteous nod can do a lot, instead of avoiding eye contact. But I wasn't there, and don't want to be captain hindsight. When someone is that volatile you could do absolutely everything right by the book and it wouldn't change a thing.
This is disgusting that we have to write off parts of the city to this and this poor woman has to file a useless police report. Our politicians are useless and should be voted out. If the woman had smoked crack at her, perhaps then she would get a fine or warning (thanks Eby). But she only attacked her so it’s fine.
Do different?
Carry something for self defence when you go to cities that are now known for this type of stuff. Unfortunately, that includes Vic and Van for sure. I have also heard/read Nanaimo has been sliding downhill too with this type of behaviour. 😔
Furthermore, longterm, vote for people that are against policies that create these issues. If the feel good bleeding heart policy sounds too good to be true, it is.
*Push back on that take is expected here, it’s Reddit, a left leaning echo chamber chiefly.
This will all likely get worse before it is better as many of the problems created by bad policies haven’t come to fruition yet. Economically we are still heading for a worse downturn too.
Some folks want to put their heads in the sand and/or double down on horrible policies thinking in time it will be fixed. It will not. The track records are already ever present for anyone to see in cities, states/provinces and countries that have tried them already.
I am sorry you had to go through that truly, but I am deathly worried this will escalate as it already seems to have -stabbings, theft, tents and drugs etc…
I’m glad you are OK and that there was someone close by to help you when this happened. It must’ve been really scary. I’m not sure there’s anything you could’ve done differently in the moment or how you could even prepare for something like that in the future. The scariest thing about these people is their unpredictability. Please report it to the police If you haven’t already.
It’s definitely not time to begin involuntary recovery programs in a closed off environment. Let’s wait until it gets worse and more people get hurt/die. It’ll be cheaper then.
I’m really sorry this happened to you. I’m almost 7 months pregnant myself and I hate that you had to go through that.
This is exactly why I tend to avoid downtown, as well as my husband and son. 😢
Ohhh it's totally not her fault. She's just looking for free drugs and probably wanted to rob you. Nothing will happen to her but if you attacked her you would be in jail. Just typical skid stuff.
I'm really sorry this happened to you ❤️
I had a knife pulled on me a few weeks ago walking close to down town. They ended up arresting him and got back to me that he was followed by one of the mental health outreach teams. His team was notified and they said they would change his medication likely.
If you file a report, they will connect you with victim services for mental health support. It is normal for your brain to process a traumatic incident by showing some signs of PTSD (flashbacks) initially. If you notice yourself having nightmares, avoiding areas or people like this, feeling hypervigilant or experiencing flashbacks longer than 1 month you should seek out treatment. It would be helpful to reach out to a trauma trained therapist now to monitor for symptoms and debrief. CPT (cognitive processing therapy) is the gold standard treatment for PTSD (not that you will 100% develop PTSD) and has really great rates of effectiveness. Everyone can experience a traumatic incident and only some people will develop PTSD so it is not a guarantee this will cause that for you.
Please take good care of yourself, and reach out for support!
(I work in a PTSD treatment centre).
So much love to you in this difficult time ❤️
Yikes - and from behind too! I'm so sorry this happened to you.
Only thing different I can think is avoid DT especially Pandora, and the strip on Douglas between the 7-11 (near the Strath and Circle K near Yates).
If you are DT have a swivel head at all times and be ready to run to avoid a confrontation if need be. Do not engage, these people are desperate, have nothing to lose, likely psychotic (brain damage) due to frequent drug ODs, and have been emboldened by the catch and release, no punishment justice system.
I'm so sorry 😞 this happened to you on your visit yo our beautiful city.
Do not even look at street people in this city. No eye contact, nothing. Like they don't exist. I've done this and it helps avoid any sort of interaction with them.
Even just looking at them creates stories in their heads.
I have had a few good interactions with a couple of homeless folk, so I wanna say that it isn't necessarily common, but it definitely happens.
I am usually on my guard when walking around with The Crackheads about.
Why do you think you feel guilty? Reporting someone who is violent? Or the fact that they are violent because they have challenges? I get that BUT what about innocent people like you or say a senior person getting attacked?
It feels like the rights and safety of the average citizen is not as important as those perpetrating the violence.
After seeing the carjacking guy get caught and released twice last week only to do it again, the catch and release program obviously makes it impossible for the police to get these people off the streets and into some sort of treatment they desperately need. All we can do is vote out Altos, Eby and Trudeau and try and get someone with some intelligence up above to solve this worsening problem. The solution is so obvious, why cant any of these morons see it?
Expect nothing less from downtown, society is soft and won’t allow for hard changes to be made. Keep that Chinese fentanyl flowing baby the same woman you report will be high by sunrise
Both are illegal. Dog spray is OK, but if the cops shake you down and find it, you need to say it's for this aggressive dog that lives on your way to work. You can't technically carry it for self-defense against people. But using it for self-defense against people if you happen to be carrying it for use against dogs wouldn't get you in trouble.
Problem is dog spray is half the potency of human spray and they only project a skinny stream, it may help or just anger assailants. Thats why the homeless themselves use bear spray which is double the strength of human spray and comes out in a huge blast.
It is also illegal to attack people but our system has failed us and the criminals walk around with impunity. If a person can be arrested 3 times for 3 car jackings in 3 days, you can carry pretty much anything you need to protect yourself
I would guarantee if you were there today and you maced this lady downtown you would spend more time in handcuffs than the carjacker guy. Assuming you are not a drug addicted street dwelling lunatic. And also I’m pretty sure it was only 2 carjackings, the 3rd crime was a B&E. 3 would just be crazy… lol
Sorry you had to deal with these type of people, last week I saw a homeless women attacking another homeless girl on the ground outside centenary square beside the bus stop
Absolutely enraging how hamstrung police have become from our government. They tell us we’ve never had it better, as they watch our country and city crumble from their gated communities
So sorry this happened!
I don't know if I was just extra vigilant and walking lots with my wife when she was pregnant, but she was a magnet for unprovoked encounters with homeless and mentally ill folks.
I had to scream at one guy and get very confrontational with another. A different time she was walking at a popular and otherwise very safe area and got warned about someone spitting on people. He saw my wife from a distance and tried closing in but she boogied out of there.
Not sure if it's a coincidence but the pregnant belly seemed to trigger all sorts of different people, men and women. I hope you report this and take the time you need to mentally recoup. That's so shitty.
I saw a woman downtown yelling something similar at other people, while also damaging trash cans and spreading the trash everywhere. That was about 2 years ago tho.
This sounds exactly like a wacko female junkie in Nanaimo, often wandering near Wallace St Timmies and downtown. She is not only obnoxious, but violent!
Have even seen her yelling at and tackling lampposts and benches- totally nuts!
Can’t do much- all the cops seem to do is conduct a welfare check and move on- they don’t give a hoot about her victims
I think it's time to start giving it back these people. They are in need of a serious backlash that the enforcement agencies and government has to actually put these people in lock up
A coworker(f) and i(m) were walking back to our van to after picking up lunch orders for the crew when a homeless lady started walking towards us we didn't think anything of it till she just started attacking my coworker, she was to scared to do anything g just turtled ans took a punch to the head, I was holding a box so I couldn't use my hand instead I kicked in the chest as hard as I could (220lbs man vs 8lb crackhead homeless lady)
she flew like 4 feet before crumpling on the ground, before she could get back up we both got to the van i gave my coworkers the keys and headed back to lady, honesty to see if she was okay i really really kicked this lady. She was up and screaming at me she had cake in her hands (gues that was her lunch) she tried to throw it at me missed so I kicked the rest of her boxed up cake down the alley and left. Go hungry crazy lady
I’m really sore you were attacked. I’m also homeless but I don’t hurt people. Most of us don’t. I think it might be fairer to all of us homeless to just say you were attacked. Regardless of her habitation. I hope you are okay and know most people are good. Homeless ones too!
Report this? Lol what's the point?
Be careful and aware of your surroundings. This kind of a thing is getting more and more frequent.
A few days ago I saw and heard a crazy guy screaming his head off at a 20 some year old woman at a gas station. Could've had a knife for all I know. It's absolute insanity and you need to be careful.
Reporting is a whole lot better than blaming the victim here. Start a paper trail, make this offender's file so thick that it can't be ignored, which puts pressure on Vic PD and the current administration to either answer for it or do something about it.
I’m so sorry this happened to you! I witnessed this woman attack two other people in line for OEB around 11:20am. The police were called and took statements from both victims. I’m sure it would be worthwhile to add your statement to the record
Today?! I was attacked at approx 11:30am this morning after leaving there.
Yes, today!
Oh my gosh that's nuts. I will definitely call them in the morning and make a report. I hope the other two people are okay.
I’d call them now, better to have a fresh memory.
I work in the area. Can you DM me a description of this person. Cheers.
Message sent!
Replied. Cheers!
But is there anything the police can do?
At minimum they can make a report that can then be used as tangible data to build up policies as these issues are dealt with. Sure its all doom and gloom, but at least we can give people who make an effort all the tools we can to try to sort things out.
Yeah. But I don't get why the police makers can not see the issues. It feels like they don't live in the same city and never step their foot on the ground...
I wish
Nothing.
If the police go after that woman, they will be criticized. If they do nothing, they will be criticized. OP was being attacked. Everyone suffers..... The reality is that the police are just doing dirty work, and there is nothing they can do, while those who should be responsible for this never face consequences (I am not talking about the woman or homeless people).
Absolutely report the incident. No one can do anything about it or help her, if no one knows about it.
I don't even know where to start. It happened this morning, and I reside two hours away (now home). Any advice appreciated!
They take this stuff seriously. I had a guy try and attack me with a broken bottle a couple years ago on Hillside and Douglas because I rode my bike through the old Volvo lot and he was passed out in the back - it was his “turf”. Anyways, he made it about a block up Douglas towards the shelter before he was in handcuffs. There will be camera footage from a nearby business they can likely pull. The officers are usually pretty familiar with the “regulars”, I’m sure they will recognize who it is.
Call Victoria police and start a police file. If you can describe the area and details around this individual it could help. She should be charged with assault but she likely won't. At this point I'd be more concerned with the welfare of her child, and the one that's likely going to be born with fasd.
This was an older (50's?) woman, and the person who also had a child and was pregnant was the one who helped me (not the attacker). I will do my best to file a report and share the details with them, thank you!
Oh sorry i didn't read that as thoroughly as i should have. Regardless this person should not be on the street. They're obviously unwell and a threat to public safety.
Did she by any chance had short, bleach blonde hair?
I believe shoulder length dirty blonde hair if I am remembering correctly.
Was she quite skinny? If it's the woman I am thinking of, I see her quite a bit down town. She's quite unstable and will go from zero to 100 for no discernable reason. I am so sorry to hear it happened to you. It's sad how many unstable people we have downtown. It's scary for people minding their own business and suddenly get accosted by these people and it is cruel that they are just left on their own with no hope of getting the help they need
Sounds like the homeless woman who screamed at me for being a heartless bastard once because I didn’t have change for her
Help her ? Who's going to help her? What do you think anyone can do for her? About the only thing VICPD will do, if they even bother to do anything, is haul her up to RJH where she will sit for a few hours till they discharge her. There's no help for people like her in this city.
No joke, they aren't gonna do a God damn thing.
My experience would say otherwise!
The fact you said they are a regular makes me thing that it might not help…
Hey now, they’ll at least get out their pencil and paper and pretend to listen
Exactly. The legal system in this city / country is run by a bunch of bleeding hearts who think that violent drug addicts are the victims
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No one can do anything about it you do report it either. No one can really do anything at all. Doing things requires money and time and political will, and there is none of that available in Victoria.
So the police can’t enforce the law? They can investigate an alleged assault? They can’t detain a suspect? The crown can’t press charges? The judge can’t sentence them? Jails can’t keep them? Social services can’t assist them? Why not?
I think it's more of a police arrest her, and suggest charges to the crown, then either: They agree on the charges and she's probably released before her trial They don't go forward with the charges and she's totally free They agree on the charges and convince the judge she'll remain a threat to society if released on bail. The odds of option 3 happening seem relatively small, and also our jailing system is overbooked so even if convicted she'll be out way too soon.
Ok thank you for your response. It sounds informed so I’ll assume this is it. Ugh. I’m tired of reading ‘hands are tied’ though. Cops should keep arresting even if it’s somewhat futile. At least then they can show the blame does not lay with them. Drug addiction aside (I’m not informed enough), violence should t be tolerated at all.
Because the police have limited resources and social services has limited resources, and the consequences of the encampment are not a priority for using those resources unless something catches on fire. I'm not saying that's good or that I agree with it. I'm saying that's what is actually happening here in Victoria. Email or call the Victoria city government if you want change. Start a petition. Get some signs and all your friends and protest outside the government building. No one does that though.
Superb…What do you think their priorities are if not public safety? I genuinely want to know.
Protecting the wealthy and their property. Literally everything else is secondary. Just look at their extreme reluctance to do ANYTHING about wealthy criminals. Anything at all. In the USA, a wealthy man confessed to assaulting women on national TV and confessed to sexually harassing teenage girls in a magazine interview. You think even a single cop knocked on his door? You can find stuff like this all around the world.
I’m going to see if I can find any statistics.
That would be lovely of you, thanks! I never turn down good data.
It is time for a class action lawsuit against the politicians that made this mess, namely Gordon Campbell and Christy Clark.
Its law enforcement according to race and/or social status. If you are either homeless or not white you don't get locked up no matter what you do or how many times you do it. Trudeau's bill c-75 needs to be repealed, and a better directive issued for the courts to follow.
Not really, we could actually greatly reduce the instance of this with minimal money and time. There’s plenty of tax paying, law abiding citizens who would be more than happy to disincentivize this kind of anti-social behaviour. All we would have to do is alter the laws around self defence and defence of other victims. Make them something close to reasonable. It would really only take a few months of consequences to put these people in their place and increase safety and civility. The only thing we lack to make this happen is political will.
What do you think “helping her” looks like, exactly?
I think it would be a good idea to report to police tomorrow. I'd also really recommend that you get a handful of sessions of support from Victims Services. It can take some time for trauma impacts to show up and it's way better to proactively get help now 💚
Thank you 💜
Write an email to yourself with the facts of what happened and a description of the attacker and Good Samaritan. It’s good to do this while it’s fresh in your mind.
That crazy woman was a total menace on Yates Street (in the block between Quadra and Blanshard) for probably close to an hour this morning (11-12pm). She struck 2 of my friends before leaving the front of OEB to harrass more people near the Yates St Market. Last we heard, the cops came and took her away, but we literally saw her walking again on Blanshard/Yates at 4pm... She's right back out and ready to rage at more unlucky people.
Oh no :( I'm so sorry. Are your friends okay? I can't believe so many people were attacked this morning! She attacked me at approx 11:30 after we had left OEB.
What is OEB?
The newish breakfast/brunch place on Yates is called OEB.
Ah thanks, wasn't sure if it was a local nickname for a restaurant with a longer name
That’s my question too! So I googled it and it’s literally OEB Breakfast Co at 856 Yates
An exceptionally phenomenal breakfast place, I highly recommend
Not exactly good for business when you have a psychopath attacking people out front.
Ah yes. Standard catch and release nonsense Whatever happened to paying for your crimes?
Just so you know I was attacked by said woman today as well, same with another person that was right beside me. She was very verbally abusive. She came right up behind me and hit me in the back a few times and fled down the street on Yates towards Blanshard. I hate how this happened to you as well. But we alerted authorities and she has been arrested shortly after. Though one of my friends said they saw her walking down the street not long after with a coffee in her hand. I just hope she gets the treatment she needs. And I hope you’re doing okay too
Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry you were also a victim. I hope you and the other person are okay.
Cops bought her coffee and told her to sober up then
I work at SaveOnFood Pandora, I see these encounters all the time. And there's nothing you can do differently. Mental illness is a serious issue among the homeless, and it occasionally leads to erratic and unpredictable behaviour. There is no way to know what will set someone off. Just tonight, some guy went and screamed at the customer service counter. No one was working there at the time... This guy just needed to yell at the spectre of customer service; then came and screamed in my face. Keep in mind I hadn't said a single word to him yet. Less than half an hour later, another dude started spitting on people, and the police had to come and arrest him. A few weeks ago, a guy was screaming and swearing at two teenage girls who worked in the front end -- and one of them was doing textbook de-escalation, and it didn't help. So yeah, there's nothing you can do differently. Doing things differently is just as likely to be what sets someone off. Don't second guess yourself, you *know* you didn't do anything wrong. This stuff just happens, and will keep happening until BC starts a *serious* anti-poverty program that actually deals with root causes.
I was so surprised when Save On decided to open a location there. Sounds like it’s going as expected.
They started building it in 2018, long before there was a single tent in front of Our Place. At that time it was an up-and-coming neighbourhood with several condo towers being built nearby, so it seemed like an ideal location.
I can’t recall tents but I started working retail around the Pandora area in early 2018 and it was already very rough at that point.
I just looked at Google street view in 2018 -- Save-On is half-built and Pandora sidewalks are empty.
Time of day is important. I used to walk to work along Pandora and it was bad a decade ago. Very few tents right there, but on the grass from time to time. Mostly it was people milling about, passed out, etc.
It’s annoying and grimey, but I wouldn’t call it objectively rough. Canadians are just soft when they’re not in skates.
Despite its problems, I bet it's still profitable. It's the only supermarket downtown and always seems to be busy.
Market On Yates is literally two blocks away... The problems are generally small. The store has security guards, and they are usually very good at de-escalating. Yes, it's VERY busy. The store was built before the construction boom started downtown, and the number of apartment buildings in the blocks adjacent to the store is doubling. We can't handle all the customers we get NOW, and there will be a lot more in the next year as those apartments fill up. And there is nowhere to expand the SaveOn. Market on Yates is expanding at some point when Harris Green gets redeveloped, but downtown really needs another grocery store.
I used to live in the building beside that save on foods. I’m a physically fit young guy and even I was afraid walking around. I can’t imagine being a woman, let alone a pregnant woman. They need an office literally parked on that block 24/7 no questions asked. I was harassed a few times, but only ever verbally.
Cops will **never** post full time officers there because then they would either have to do something about it all or let the public see them doing nothing. And they don’t want either of those things.
I mean, the root cause of these interactions is that there’s people with mental illnesses so severe they can’t function in society ambling about downtown, frequently exacerbated by drug induced states of psychosis. There’s never going to be a “root cause” solution to people with non-functioning mental illness. It’s a possible state of the human condition, which means it will always be present at some frequency of the population. So if we’re talking about the real “root causes” of why those specific people with those specific conditions are in those specific places having those specific, traumatizing interactions with the general public, it’s that we don’t confine them in institutions such that they can’t be out on the street screaming at imaginary customer service clerks. So I’d love to talk about solving that root cause. Let’s bring those institutions back and make sure the legal framework exists in the charter to keep people who need it in them until a panel of doctors is convinced they *won’t* end up ambling about Pandora screaming at or randomly attacking people.
Or for a fraction of the price of institutionalization, they could be given homes and have support workers visit them regularly. People's mental health always improves when they have their own safe space to exist in.
An institution is a home, staffed by support workers. We have seen exactly what “supportive” housing can turn into when it’s filled with people in the darkest throes of whatever put them on the street in the first place. A person like the woman described in this interaction doesn’t need a “support worker”. She needs someone else, preferably a psychiatrist, to make every decision about where she physically is and what drugs & medication she does or does not consume until she is stable enough to move on to a less intensive supportive housing situation. Depending on what’s wrong with her, that may in fact never happen. If you’re at the point of attacking strangers on the street, a stat funded apartment and a twice weekly visit from a “support” person is not going to cut it.
Truely supportive housing wouldn't be "twice weekly visit", it would be multiple times a day and an ongoing relationship with social workers help the person normalize and learn to function. The problem is the half-assed approach where people get dumped in an apartment with minimal support or none at all. If you think people are getting regular support in institutions, you are sadly mistaken. Normal is therapy once a week, medication every night, and then getting kicked out when they need the bed for someone else.
Well here it’s actually none of those things because we don’t really have any institutions anymore. But I’ll be honest what you just described seems like a massive, ‘OMFG why aren’t we doing that?’ Improvement compared to the status quo. For everyone. At least this lady would be getting medication and therapy once a week and she wouldn’t be assaulting anyone waiting in line for breakfast. It really sounds like you’re arguing that as a society, it either has to be perfect, or nothing.
No, I'm comparing two different solutions -- one is cheaper, more effective, more humanizing, safer, and has been proven superior in study after study. The other has solution is institutions.
You've clearly never seen the inside of an institution. They are hellish. They are not a home, any more than the ICU of a hospital is a home. A person can live in supportive housing and still have psych nurses visit daily to help them.
And then when the psyche nurses come calling to find no one home because they’re off assaulting pregnant strangers in the street, what then?
The same thing that happens when anyone else goes out and assaults people. Most assaults in Victoria are committed by housed, healthy people. If you want to lock people up preventatively, start with them. No one -- literally no one -- is suggesting that there be no consequences or accountability. But unless someone has committed a real crime, it is cheaper and safer and more effective to treat them at home. I think you people assume that institutions are the cheap affordable answer, but they are actually much more expensive than supportive housing. Keep that in mind when you get pissy about goverment-funded apartments.
We could immediately make the situation better with some legal tweaks. There’s plenty of tax paying, law abiding citizens who would be more than happy to disincentivize this kind of anti-social behaviour. All we would have to do is alter the laws around self defence and defence of other victims. Make them something close to reasonable. It would really only take a few months of consequences to put these people in their place and increase safety and civility. The only thing we lack to make this happen is political will. It would be an effective stopgap measure. You said it yourself, de-escalation doesn’t always work.
We *could* immediately make the situation better with some legal tweaks. There’s plenty of tax paying, law abiding citizens who would be more than happy to disincentivize this kind of anti-social behaviour. All we would have to do is alter the laws around self defence and defence of other victims. Make them something close to reasonable. It would really only take a few months of consequences to put these people in their place and increase safety and civility. The only thing we lack to make this happen is political will. It would be an effective stopgap measure. You said it yourself, de-escalation doesn’t always work.
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I really do appreciate this and the time you took to gather info for me. Thank you 💜 I am O.K, but still having a hard time replaying the event in my head. I am just happy that my baby is safe in my belly and that my toddler wasn't with me at the time. I would be devastated if she had been in the attack.
Seconding the Tetris thing, it's proven to help your brain after a traumatic event. Best played asap after said event.
This is great information, thanks. > simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is the frightening thing: Yates at Blanshard didn't used to be a bad part of town. Neither did Douglas at View, or Yates at Government (stabbings). I don't feel safe anywhere downtown now. Twice a day on weekdays I commute through it, switching buses but I don't go window-shopping anymore in my free time.
Go to the police. The person you are talking about is clearly a danger to others and needs to be dealt with. File a police report.
The police aren’t able to do anything anymore. Thanks to the bail reform bill in 2019 they can’t hold them. Look at the man who tried to carjack two days in a row and home invasion on the third day within this week. Police recommend no bail but the judge just releases. We’re purposely being sent to purge at this point. I feel so bad for the officers unable to do their job, or rather having to do the same job over and over again with the same people. It must be infuriating.
Yikes, I’m glad you are okay. I had a similar experience in my city (Calgary) where a homeless woman randomly came up to me and punched me in the face while I was walking by the train station downtown. I approached some security guards afterwards who were able to hold her for smoking on the platform, who called the police. The police asked me if I wanted them to press charges and I said yes. Anyway, a few months later I called the cop who was in charge of my case because I hadn’t heard anything. Turns out everything was on camera and she actually did end up going to prison for it. I did not have to go to court or anything. I suspect if you were in a public place where there’s higher crime, it was likely caught on camera as well, not to mention the people who witnessed it. Definitely tell the Victoria police!
I'm so sorry this happened to you, it's truly a terrible situation. I think it's a great idea to report it to the police...I hope you're safe and this incident doesn't affect you further (psychologically speaking). I had a friend that got attacked very similarly by a homeless man and wasn't able to leave home afterwards for a month. I thing doing it may help you get some sort of closure.
I think Riverview needs to be reopened as there is to much mental illness on the loose .
I’m so sorry this happened to you. You said she appeared to be in her 50s. Did she have long, straight white/grey hair and a sort of smoker’s voice? I was followed, heavily cussed out, and recorded by an older woman a few weeks ago. Very unnerving.
I'm so sorry that happened to you, are you okay? I can't be 100% sure since some time has passed, but I do think she had shorter dirty blonde hair, and I was a bit thrown off as it looked like her upper lip had been injected with botox at some point. Heavy smokers voice as well, though.
Hmmmm. Probably a different woman. We do have a large selection downtown denizens at the ready to throw, scream, spray, and stab. I work on Pandora so honestly I’m pretty used to it. I can’t imagine how scary it would have been with your kiddo there.
Absolutely report it. I had a similar thing happen at Crystal Pools last year in the change room. A woman accused me of laughing at her, said I was working with her bf or something to take away her kids. I am so sorry this happened to you.
I had someone start yelling at me on the sidewalk on Blanshard and she ended up pushing me into traffic. Thankfully no cars coming. It was deeply traumatic.
A lot of folks on this thread seem willing to just let it keep happening and grumbling that Vic PD won't do anything. Alright, that may be the case, but you call it in anyways. If you guys are big on reform then get it on public record. If City Hall loves one thing it's metrics, and if dispatch is getting swamped with calls concerning the same troublemakers downtown assaulting people then they're going to have to deal with it. Yeah, it's not ideal, but it's better than throwing up your hands and doing nothing about it while hoping for something to change at the top.
How scary. Nothing you really could have done differently - as someone who lives downtown, just about everyone walks by and ignores the people talking to themselves without issue. You could not have predicted what she would get triggered by nor can you typically reason with people in this state.
I’m sorry this happened to you; hopefully you’re doing okay. A similar unprovoked assault happened to my wife several months ago corner of Yates/Gov’t. Definitely call the police and file a report. We don’t go downtown much anymore…
Glad you and the baby are ok for the most part. Definitely report it that’s so fucked up this town is turning more and more into a shithole
Call the police non emergency number and report.
This is terrifying. I'm so sorry OP.
I would absolutely report it to police ASAP while the incident is still fresh in your mind. I'm really sorry that you had this scary encounter, and you didn't do anything wrong.
Victoria is going to shit. I was just walking to my car and had some guy wearing all black and a face mask w his hood up start speed walking towards me and my car and I had to book it inside and just when I got in and locked it he was at the rear of my car. Then just waived at me well I booked it tf out of there.
I'm sure I've shared the story on this sub before, but here it is again as a word of warning. A couple weeks after moving to the city I was walking along the harbor around 4:00 p.m. killing time before going to the IMAX. A guy on a bike with a Boombox started following me, offering me drugs which I declined, but he continued trailing behind me. I started walking right in the heart of downtown just to get some eyes on me, and he must have followed me for eight blocks or so. Finally I noticed that he had left me alone, so I started making my way to the theater, and not a minute later I was struck behind in the head by a short homeless woman. Had her fists up, continued kicking and punching at me as I backed up. I end up walking directly into the middle of an intersection just to get eyes on me. I also noticed that the guy on the bike who's following me was standing across the street with about six other homeless dudes all watching the interaction intensely. After a couple minutes of her yelling obscenities at me, and me yelling at her to get the f*** away from me, she ended up crossing the street and met with the other guys, in which they all followed me for another four blocks until I managed to get on a bus. I know for a fact that if I had laid a single hand on that woman, they all would have crossed the street and absolutely pummeled me, and probably robbed me to. What was equally disturbing to me though is how unwilling a single person on that sidewalk was to help me out. At least two dozen people witnessed the entire thing if not more, but people are afraid. I can't believe that anybody downtown could see a pregnant woman being attacked and not immediately jump in, I have to admit that really left a bad taste in my mouth for the city. I'm so sorry you had to go through that
The violence has increased it seems since the drugs have changed over the years. Never used to be this way.
I'd report this to local media too. There needs to be greater awareness of how bad things have gotten especially since decrimalization of drugs. People openly shooting up all over. It's truly scary and dangerous as people who uses drugs especially with underlying mental illness are volatile.
I'm so sorry this happened to you . These people should not be on the streets and should be institutionalized. It is not fair or just that the public has to deal with these violent individuals because our governments on all levels have dropped the ball for so many years.
Empathy for criminals comes at the expense of empathy for the innocent. It's frustrating that nothing is being done about these constant attacks, and I say this as someone who lives downtown and witnesses and hears these kind of events constantly.
Definitely report it
I'm so sorry this happened to you
I might’ve had an experience with this same woman like a month ago. I was pushing my son in his stroller on government st. at like 6pm. She was ranting about being sexually assaulted, then, luckily from a distance, started calling me a bitch who stole her baby. I was alone, so quickly ducked in a building. Pretty scary to think what could’ve happened.
I just stay away from downtown, like most of my friends. I'm not into 1000's of crazy people using it as a washroom and stabbing people for fun.
Report it and take it a step further - send emails to Victoria city council, Adrian Dix and David Eby. At some point someone needs to start listening and dealing with getting unstable, addicted, mentally challenged people into proper care. Oh wait- we’d need proper facilities. Perhaps they can start there.
I’m so sorry this happened to you! Downtown Victoria is an absolute disaster and should be avoided at all costs. It's just to risky to go down there, plus you don't know what these people are truly capable of. You should definitely report it to the police!
Unfortunately unsolicited attacks happen daily in town whether you hear about it or not. You should undoubtedly report this to law enforcement
you know things are fucked when after spending a month in Mexico, you realize you feel safer walking at night there than during the day here.
I gather that you spent your time in a tourist resort town like Puerto Vallarta.
I gather you creeped my comment history, I landed there because its the closest airport, spent a few days there for my dad estate and memorial, but no I spit my time between outskirts of CDMX and a town with no connection to tourism aside from they grow a lot of agave for the tequila market there.
Latin countries do a much better job of taking care of each other, especially within the family, and taking care of themselves (any way they can). They don’t rely nearly so much on the government, because they have no faith in the government. With good reason. Edit: that’s in no way a knock on those here that are struggling. We are all to some degree products of our environment.
100% hard agree. This is the primary problem in Canada, we are far too individualistic.
OP I am so sorry this happened to you- and I really encourage you to speak to a counsellor to debrief about this if you are able to. There’s a lot to unpack in that encounter. I hope you have someone you can speak to 💜
I'm really sorry that happened to you, that would be terrifying. You asked if there's anything you could have done differently. Probably not, probably your instincts were good. It's a pipe dream if anyone thinks they can talk someone down from acute psychosis and aggression in an instant. Just make space, protect yourself and try to get help. The only thing I can think of is a courteous nod can do a lot, instead of avoiding eye contact. But I wasn't there, and don't want to be captain hindsight. When someone is that volatile you could do absolutely everything right by the book and it wouldn't change a thing.
Time to start taking out the trash downtown
I'm so sorry, mama. You absolutely should report this. This is horrible.
This is disgusting that we have to write off parts of the city to this and this poor woman has to file a useless police report. Our politicians are useless and should be voted out. If the woman had smoked crack at her, perhaps then she would get a fine or warning (thanks Eby). But she only attacked her so it’s fine.
Do different? Carry something for self defence when you go to cities that are now known for this type of stuff. Unfortunately, that includes Vic and Van for sure. I have also heard/read Nanaimo has been sliding downhill too with this type of behaviour. 😔 Furthermore, longterm, vote for people that are against policies that create these issues. If the feel good bleeding heart policy sounds too good to be true, it is. *Push back on that take is expected here, it’s Reddit, a left leaning echo chamber chiefly. This will all likely get worse before it is better as many of the problems created by bad policies haven’t come to fruition yet. Economically we are still heading for a worse downturn too. Some folks want to put their heads in the sand and/or double down on horrible policies thinking in time it will be fixed. It will not. The track records are already ever present for anyone to see in cities, states/provinces and countries that have tried them already. I am sorry you had to go through that truly, but I am deathly worried this will escalate as it already seems to have -stabbings, theft, tents and drugs etc…
I’m glad you are OK and that there was someone close by to help you when this happened. It must’ve been really scary. I’m not sure there’s anything you could’ve done differently in the moment or how you could even prepare for something like that in the future. The scariest thing about these people is their unpredictability. Please report it to the police If you haven’t already.
It’s definitely not time to begin involuntary recovery programs in a closed off environment. Let’s wait until it gets worse and more people get hurt/die. It’ll be cheaper then.
Carry bear spray in case you come across bears on your hikes
Woah pissing off 2 pregnant ladies, I’m surprised she still has eyes by the end of it
Sorry this happened to you.
I’m sorry OP. Please take it easy this week (as much as you can with a toddler), and make time for activities that you find uplift you.
I’m really sorry this happened to you. I’m almost 7 months pregnant myself and I hate that you had to go through that. This is exactly why I tend to avoid downtown, as well as my husband and son. 😢
Wow I heard about this lady from a friend who works nearby. She's just making the rounds... terrible
I’m sorry you had to go thru this. It sounds very random and you must feel so shook up.
Ohhh it's totally not her fault. She's just looking for free drugs and probably wanted to rob you. Nothing will happen to her but if you attacked her you would be in jail. Just typical skid stuff.
I'm really sorry this happened to you ❤️ I had a knife pulled on me a few weeks ago walking close to down town. They ended up arresting him and got back to me that he was followed by one of the mental health outreach teams. His team was notified and they said they would change his medication likely. If you file a report, they will connect you with victim services for mental health support. It is normal for your brain to process a traumatic incident by showing some signs of PTSD (flashbacks) initially. If you notice yourself having nightmares, avoiding areas or people like this, feeling hypervigilant or experiencing flashbacks longer than 1 month you should seek out treatment. It would be helpful to reach out to a trauma trained therapist now to monitor for symptoms and debrief. CPT (cognitive processing therapy) is the gold standard treatment for PTSD (not that you will 100% develop PTSD) and has really great rates of effectiveness. Everyone can experience a traumatic incident and only some people will develop PTSD so it is not a guarantee this will cause that for you. Please take good care of yourself, and reach out for support! (I work in a PTSD treatment centre). So much love to you in this difficult time ❤️
Thank you so much 💜
Yikes - and from behind too! I'm so sorry this happened to you. Only thing different I can think is avoid DT especially Pandora, and the strip on Douglas between the 7-11 (near the Strath and Circle K near Yates). If you are DT have a swivel head at all times and be ready to run to avoid a confrontation if need be. Do not engage, these people are desperate, have nothing to lose, likely psychotic (brain damage) due to frequent drug ODs, and have been emboldened by the catch and release, no punishment justice system.
I'm so sorry 😞 this happened to you on your visit yo our beautiful city. Do not even look at street people in this city. No eye contact, nothing. Like they don't exist. I've done this and it helps avoid any sort of interaction with them. Even just looking at them creates stories in their heads.
Press. Charges.
I have had a few good interactions with a couple of homeless folk, so I wanna say that it isn't necessarily common, but it definitely happens. I am usually on my guard when walking around with The Crackheads about.
It is the new Victoria Welcoming Committee.
Too bad OEB is in such a sketchy part of town :(
I’ve been attacked a few times downtown. I haven’t reported it yet because I always feel a sense of guilt.
Why do you think you feel guilty? Reporting someone who is violent? Or the fact that they are violent because they have challenges? I get that BUT what about innocent people like you or say a senior person getting attacked? It feels like the rights and safety of the average citizen is not as important as those perpetrating the violence.
Your should report it. What if they attack someone else and cause serious harm?
After seeing the carjacking guy get caught and released twice last week only to do it again, the catch and release program obviously makes it impossible for the police to get these people off the streets and into some sort of treatment they desperately need. All we can do is vote out Altos, Eby and Trudeau and try and get someone with some intelligence up above to solve this worsening problem. The solution is so obvious, why cant any of these morons see it?
We NEED better mental health support !!:( I’m so sorry this happened to you!! More policing is noT the answer
Expect nothing less from downtown, society is soft and won’t allow for hard changes to be made. Keep that Chinese fentanyl flowing baby the same woman you report will be high by sunrise
Pepper spray and tazers are your friend downtown
Both are illegal. Dog spray is OK, but if the cops shake you down and find it, you need to say it's for this aggressive dog that lives on your way to work. You can't technically carry it for self-defense against people. But using it for self-defense against people if you happen to be carrying it for use against dogs wouldn't get you in trouble.
Problem is dog spray is half the potency of human spray and they only project a skinny stream, it may help or just anger assailants. Thats why the homeless themselves use bear spray which is double the strength of human spray and comes out in a huge blast.
It is also illegal to attack people but our system has failed us and the criminals walk around with impunity. If a person can be arrested 3 times for 3 car jackings in 3 days, you can carry pretty much anything you need to protect yourself
I would guarantee if you were there today and you maced this lady downtown you would spend more time in handcuffs than the carjacker guy. Assuming you are not a drug addicted street dwelling lunatic. And also I’m pretty sure it was only 2 carjackings, the 3rd crime was a B&E. 3 would just be crazy… lol
Ok. That's great and all. But at the end of the day, nothing you said makes it not illegal to carry pepper spray or tasers.
It's like marijuana, get more people walking around with it and before you know it, it's legalized.
Time to declare open season on these menaces
Did she have a lot of tattoos
No, I don't believe so.
Sorry you had to deal with these type of people, last week I saw a homeless women attacking another homeless girl on the ground outside centenary square beside the bus stop
Absolutely enraging how hamstrung police have become from our government. They tell us we’ve never had it better, as they watch our country and city crumble from their gated communities
Classic Victoria Drug Den problems. This city is fucked.
Its not common, but i would have called police
The homeless assault misinformation crew are pretty quiet on this one lol
Definitely add your statement to the police.
I'd say yeah you should report it, but unfortunately the police won't do anything and just release her back on the streets
So sorry this happened! I don't know if I was just extra vigilant and walking lots with my wife when she was pregnant, but she was a magnet for unprovoked encounters with homeless and mentally ill folks. I had to scream at one guy and get very confrontational with another. A different time she was walking at a popular and otherwise very safe area and got warned about someone spitting on people. He saw my wife from a distance and tried closing in but she boogied out of there. Not sure if it's a coincidence but the pregnant belly seemed to trigger all sorts of different people, men and women. I hope you report this and take the time you need to mentally recoup. That's so shitty.
I love living in cobble hill
I saw a woman downtown yelling something similar at other people, while also damaging trash cans and spreading the trash everywhere. That was about 2 years ago tho.
This sounds exactly like a wacko female junkie in Nanaimo, often wandering near Wallace St Timmies and downtown. She is not only obnoxious, but violent! Have even seen her yelling at and tackling lampposts and benches- totally nuts! Can’t do much- all the cops seem to do is conduct a welfare check and move on- they don’t give a hoot about her victims
Might be the only time it is mildly acceptable for a man to hit a woman
I think it's time to start giving it back these people. They are in need of a serious backlash that the enforcement agencies and government has to actually put these people in lock up
A coworker(f) and i(m) were walking back to our van to after picking up lunch orders for the crew when a homeless lady started walking towards us we didn't think anything of it till she just started attacking my coworker, she was to scared to do anything g just turtled ans took a punch to the head, I was holding a box so I couldn't use my hand instead I kicked in the chest as hard as I could (220lbs man vs 8lb crackhead homeless lady) she flew like 4 feet before crumpling on the ground, before she could get back up we both got to the van i gave my coworkers the keys and headed back to lady, honesty to see if she was okay i really really kicked this lady. She was up and screaming at me she had cake in her hands (gues that was her lunch) she tried to throw it at me missed so I kicked the rest of her boxed up cake down the alley and left. Go hungry crazy lady
I’m really sore you were attacked. I’m also homeless but I don’t hurt people. Most of us don’t. I think it might be fairer to all of us homeless to just say you were attacked. Regardless of her habitation. I hope you are okay and know most people are good. Homeless ones too!
I live in Vic. I find a nice chopping kick to the side of the knee does the job when they screw with me. All genders can get it.
Report this? Lol what's the point? Be careful and aware of your surroundings. This kind of a thing is getting more and more frequent. A few days ago I saw and heard a crazy guy screaming his head off at a 20 some year old woman at a gas station. Could've had a knife for all I know. It's absolute insanity and you need to be careful.
Reporting is a whole lot better than blaming the victim here. Start a paper trail, make this offender's file so thick that it can't be ignored, which puts pressure on Vic PD and the current administration to either answer for it or do something about it.
Glad you're ok. The only thing you should do differently is not waste your vote on the NDP or Liberals.
Yeah - vote conservative so everything else can go to shit too LOL
Sure, PP is very concerned about Victoria. At least stick to provincial politics…
It’s possible they’re referring to the BC Cons, which is even more laughable honestly.
Interesting, what do you think any other party can do about it ?