Garcia filmed part of the confrontation, which shows a man spraying a homeless woman and her belongings with a hose as she cries for him to stop. It quickly went viral on TikTok and Twitter, drawing condemnation from advocates and criticism of the man.
The woman has not been identified. Garcia, a baker at a cafe a block from where the incident took place, said he recognized her as an unhoused person who had been in the neighborhood for about two years.
“She’s very calm,” Garcia said. “She always has a broom in her hand. She cleans where she sleeps.