Homeless say attacks are daily

The Costa Mesa mayor and three City Council members Tuesday condemned the actions of a group of teenagers who shot a 48-year-old homeless man in Costa Mesa with paintballs, landing him at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian.

The man, Gregory Dahlgren, was reportedly sleeping in the alley behind P K Burgers near Placentia Avenue and Center Street when he was shot about 9 p.m. by a handful of kids 25 to 35 times. One paintball hit him in the face, severely damaging his right eye, but he was released from the hospital Monday in good condition, officials said.

Costa Mesa Councilwoman Wendy Leece said the parents of the children who committed the act should have been more aware of what their kids were doing.

“The attack on Mr. Dahlgren is reprehensible. I am disappointed that we have people in our city that would do such a terrible thing,” Leece said.

Councilwoman Katrina Foley, Councilman Gary Monahan and Mayor Allan Mansoor were similarly disturbed by the incident, which they said they heard about through news reports. All of them believe the act was an isolated event and not part of a larger citywide problem.

“Any time someone gets hurt in a way that’s unprovoked it’s disturbing, but it could have happened anywhere,” Monahan said.

“I don’t think there’s anything we can do differently. I think it’s a just an incident where people are acting crazy,” Foley said.

Many homeless agree that it was a unique attack because of its severity.

“It’s been coming on more and more lately,” said Tony Smith, a homeless man who often sleeps where Dahlgren was attacked.

He said only a few months ago a group of kids approached him in the very same alley and asked how he was doing.

Suddenly, they began pelting him with rocks, Smith said.

“They told me to get out of their barrio. Get out of your barrio?” Smith bristled.

“I’ve been here since I was in sixth grade. I’m 52 years old!

“This wasn’t happening a couple months ago, but now, it’s getting more prevalent,” he added.

Smith and a friend said they’ve seen more homeless kicked out of other cities arriving in Costa Mesa in recent months, stealing blankets and other items from other people in need.

Scott Solverson and Ed Darden sat on a planter near the sidewalk on 19th Street in Costa Mesa Tuesday morning, sipping tall cans of beer across the street from Someone Cares Soup Kitchen.

“I got my [expletive] kicked by some kids on Center Street,” Solverson said.

He said at first two teenagers attacked him and he was able to fight them off, then three more joined the fight and stomped on him while he was on the ground.

Such attacks, Solverson and Smith said, are rare and are usually by groups of teenagers. Local residents tend to recognize who’s homeless and only bother the people who cause trouble, Smith said.

Darden said he’s never been touched but had some rocks thrown at him from kids. People harass the homeless daily, many said.

“Twice a day. It don’t bother me,” Darden said. “We’re not bad folks. We’re homeless. We still have a heart.”

Darden and Solverson spoke of several incidents with the same perpetrators, who are convicts. Arrest records show that the homeless are routinely arrested for public intoxication or fighting among each other.

Costa Mesa police Sgt. Bryan Glass said officers have not seen an increase in attacks against the homeless and “if they are occurring [the homeless] are not reporting it.”

Alta Klepper, an elderly homeless woman getting lunch at Someone Cares Soup Kitchen, said she was berated and pushed around on the bus.

Regularly people try to target her and others she knows for harassment, she said.

“People in our area are targeting the homeless,” said Shannon Santos, executive director of Someone Cares Soup Kitchen. “They’re taking advantage of their misfortune. They’re looking at them as someone that can be attacked.”

While Friday’s paintball assault was on a different level altogether, Santos said, hassling people she encounters daily is “ongoing and regular.”

The police have not yet arrested anyone in connection with Friday’s attack against Dahlgren and only can describe them as 15- to 18-year-olds wearing jeans and T-shirts. Mansoor said he hopes witnesses will come forward and help the police find those responsible.

“I know our police do everything they can. I think it’s also important for members of the community to be aware of what’s going on in their areas and be good witnesses when things like this happen,” he said.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com. ALAN BLANK may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at alan.blank@latimes.com.