Members of the Guardian Angels will begin patrolling the 14th Street corridor after a brutal beating over an empty beer can.
The Guardian Angels are a volunteer organization that seeks to combat crime in urban areas. John Ayala, the group's D.C. chapter leader, said that unarmed citizen patrols would begin at noon Monday -- not 11:30 p.m. Sunday as previously reported -- around the intersection of 14th and W streets NW.
That's the area where a resident was beaten after confronting another man for littering Friday afternoon.
The resident spoke up when he saw the man tossing an empty beer can onto the sidewalk. “Would you please pick that up? I live in this building," he said.
Police said the man then responded, "Who the [expletive] do you think you're talking to?" before repeatedly punching the victim in the face.
He suffered a broken jaw, a facial fracture and lost teeth, and also had to have stitches.
Neighborhood residents say that they have complained to city officials multiple times about loitering and other crimes committed in the area, but they claim that their complaints have largely fallen on deaf ears.
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The Guardian Angels group, which also patrols the Metro, says that its presence is designed to serve as a crime deterrent. But members also will detain anyone they see commit a crime, and conduct citizens' arrests.
The beating was captured on the building's security camera, and police are reviewing the tape.
