This is the moment three cops arrested a San Francisco gallery owner after he hosed down a homeless woman outside his shop – while angry locals blast prosecutors for wasting police funds amid a rise in crime.
Collier Gwin, 71, was caught on camera on January 9 spraying a homeless woman with a hose after she refused to move so he could clear the sidewalk.
The owner of the Foster Gwin art gallery in North Beach, San Francisco, was dragged away by three police officers on January 18 after prosecutor Brooke Jenkins ordered his arrest – branding his actions totally unacceptable.
Jenkins was initially greeted with a no-nonsense attitude from San Fran residents but has been accused in recent months of pursuing “soft” policies as violence and drug trafficking soar.
Pictured: Collier Gwin who runs the Foster Gwin Gallery in the Financial District. He was arrested at his gallery at 3pm on Wednesday after city prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for him
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Gwin has defended his actions after the footage went viral but issued an apology shortly before his arrest near his gallery on Wednesday.
The footage shows him spraying the street while the woman tries to block the stream of water with her hand.
Then he stops spraying, points to the street and says, “Hey, just move. Move. Move. Move. ok, are you moving? Are you going to move?’
Jenkins confirmed that the sprayed woman did not want to press charges against Gwin, but prosecutors decided to proceed with the conviction.
She said in a statement: “Following the investigation by the San Francisco Police Department and reviewing all of the evidence presented, my office has issued an arrest warrant for Collier Gwin.
‘Gwin faces a misdemeanor charge for allegedly willfully and unlawfully spraying water on and around a woman experiencing homelessness.
Jenkins was initially greeted with a no-nonsense attitude from San Fran residents but has been accused in recent months of pursuing “soft” policies as violence and drug trafficking soar
Jenkins – who has been criticized in the past for his soft-spoken criminal prosecution – revealed the victim had not attempted to press charges against the shopkeeper – who spoke about his actions in interviews with various news outlets over the past few days
The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office issued a statement announcing that a warrant for his arrest had been issued for Gwin, following widespread public outcry over the footage
“The alleged battery of an unaccommodated member of our community is totally unacceptable.
‘Mr. Gwin will face appropriate consequences for his actions. Likewise, the vandalism at Gallery Foster Gwin is totally unacceptable and must stop – two mistakes make no mistake.”
After footage went viral, the door and window of Gwin’s gallery were smashed – which was also condemned by the Da.
On Monday, ABC7 in San Francisco reported that Gwin apologized for spray-spraying the woman days after he said he “found it hard to apologize” for it.
He said: “I know it’s very difficult to see. I can only ask others to perhaps better understand my breaking point.
“I have the video to constantly remind myself that this is a big cross to bear.”
Gwin previously claimed that the woman, known only as Q, had turned over garbage cans in front of his gallery and he asked her to move so he could clean the street.
Three police officers swooped down on Gwin near his gallery around 3pm on Wednesday after an arrest warrant was issued for him
Gwin went viral after he was filmed hoseing down a homeless woman outside his San Francisco store. He was arrested on battery charges hours after the city’s prosecutor said he would be charged in the widely publicized incident
He has insisted that he is not sorry and tries to “help” her. He said the woman had been outside his gallery for days
But she reportedly got “belligerent” and started spitting, so he splashed water on her – in freezing temperatures.
He also claims that he had previously allowed her to sleep in his entryway on several occasions and contacted police and social services to try to get her help.
Speaking to the San Fran Chronicle, he added: “I’m sorry? I’m just sorry that…my ways of helping her countless times didn’t work.”
San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin of the San Francisco Department of Public Health called the incident a “ruthless attack.”
He wrote on Twitter: “My office is well acquainted with the victim and has been trying to get their assistance for many months.
“It’s not North Beach, it’s not who we are as a community + we will not tolerate ‘vigilante’ attacks.”
If convicted, Gwin could face up to six months in prison and a $2,000 fine, prosecutors said.
Gwin’s attempt to make amends also followed an event led by Rev. Amos Brown – who sits on the two indemnity committees – at the Third Baptist Church in San Francisco.
Community and religious leaders across the city, including District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, discussed the aftermath of the event
Gwin previously claimed that the woman, known only as Q, had turned over garbage cans in front of his gallery and he asked her to move so he could clean the street
Community and religious leaders across the city, including District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, discussed the aftermath of the event.
Gwin’s art gallery has been around since 1984 and has attracted A-List clients like Arnold Schwarzenegger, according to SocketSite.
The gallery shares a wall with a restaurant called the Barbarossa Lounge, where Gwin was seen leaning against a gate in the video.
Jenkins has come under fire in recent months for implementing some anti-crime policies in a city that has been dead of crime and homeless since the ’90s.
Major crimes in San Francisco are up 7.4 percent this year from the same period in 2021 so far, assault up 11.1 percent and robbery up 5.2 percent.
Amid the misery on the city’s streets, where drug use is outrageous and homelessness is rampant, a recent poll found that a majority of San Franciscos believe their city is going downhill and a third plan to see the city within three years to leave.
Rows of homeless tents can be seen near San Francisco City Hall in front of apartment buildings and small commercial buildings earlier this year
About 8,000 homeless people were reported in the city in February
Some residents blame Mayor London Breed, whose previous popularity for navigating the city through the pandemic appears to have waned amid rising crime, the fentanyl epidemic and other woes.
The video comes amid a growing homelessness crisis in the city. The number of homeless people in San Francisco was counted at nearly 8,000 in February, the second highest number since 2005, according to the official government census, which takes place every three years.
Business owners in the Castro neighborhood of San Francisco have threatened to stop paying taxes unless politicians start clearing the streets of trash and preventing people from openly using drugs.
In a letter to city officials in August, the Castro Merchants Association said some of the homeless on the streets outside their stores had been harassing customers and needed help.