A business owner who went viral after he was filmed hoseing down a homeless woman outside his San Francisco store has been arrested for assault, hours after the city’s attorney general said he would be charged in the widespread incident.
Collier Gwin, the owner of the Foster Gwin art gallery, is currently being held on misdemeanor charges arising from the Jan. 9 altercation, police said on Wednesday after his arrest.
Earlier in the day, the San Francisco Attorney’s Office issued a statement announcing that a warrant had been issued for Gwin’s arrest following widespread public outcry over footage, which was filmed on a day when temperatures reached 49 degrees.
The video, posted on social media, spurred detectives to seek and successfully identify the gallery owner and served as evidence enough to charge Gwin, officials said after his arrest Wednesday night.
If convicted of the crime, Gwin faces up to six months in prison — and a $2,000 fine.
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A business owner who went viral after he was filmed hoseing down a homeless woman outside his San Francisco store has been arrested for assault, hours after the city’s attorney general said he would be charged in the widespread incident
“The alleged battery of an unaccommodated member of our community is totally unacceptable,” Jenkins said, referring to footage showing the shopkeeper casually dousing the unnamed woman with a jet of water.
Jenkins went on to reveal that the victim did not want to press charges against the shopkeeper – who in interviews with various news outlets over the past few days has stood by his actions and said that when he asked the woman to move she became aggressive and refused.
Still, Jenkins said Wednesday, “Mr. Gwin will face appropriate consequences for his actions.’
The prosecutor, who has come under fire for a soft crime policy in a city that has been crime-free and homeless since the ’90s, went on to blame citizens who ransacked Gwin’s shop, the door of which was smashed in as footage was revealed spread via social media.
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
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 vandalism at the Foster Gwin gallery is also totally unacceptable and must stop,” prosecutors wrote, before telling citizens in the homeless camp-crammed city, “Two mistakes don’t make a right.”
Records show Gwin was arrested at around 3:30 p.m. in or near his gallery. As armchair detectives had shot down the shopkeeper over the past few days, Gwin made it clear that he would not hide from anyone.
But even after he made statements to outlets like The San Francisco Chronicle and ABC 7, other local businesses condemned his actions, while dozens of angry social media users left horrible reviews online – leading to the gallery’s Google rating dropped to just one star.
Speaking about the incident earlier this week, an unapologetic Gwin cited the city’s widespread homelessness situation as a triggering factor for the incident.
“I’ve been here for 40 years,” Gwin told The Chronicle. We have a lot of homeless people [people]. But they have never been in a situation where they became so violent [within] 10 days neighborhood trying to do something.
“We were able to take them to an animal shelter, which they leave immediately.”
Earlier in the day, the San Francisco Attorney’s Office issued a statement announcing that a warrant had been issued for Gwin’s arrest following widespread public outcry over footage, which was filmed on a day when temperatures reached 49 degrees
The reporter in the video said: “I listened to her speak to people and say, ‘No, this is how I want to live. My idea of cleanliness is not your idea of cleanliness.’
Gwin replied, “That’s fine, as long as she knows what she’s saying.”
After Gwin admitted to being the man in the hose video, Gwin claimed the woman had become psychotic and was overturning garbage cans.
“I said you need to move, I can’t clean up the street, go downstairs,” Gwin told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Gwin has insisted he has no regrets and tried to “help” her. He said the woman had been outside his gallery for days
“She starts yelling warlike things, spitting, yelling at me… by that point she was so out of control… I hose her down and I’m like, ‘Move, move.’ I’ll help you.”
He also noted that he had previously been a “champion” for trying to help her.
The Brioche Cafe chef who recorded the video said he saw the scene unfold while making a delivery around 6am.
“I was shocked,” Edson Garcia told The Chronicle. ‘I know this lady.’
The video has since amassed millions of views. But despite widespread backlash, Gwin stuck to his actions.
“You know, spraying her isn’t the answer, but spraying her was something that woke her up and calmed her down,” Gwin said.
‘So I’m sorry? I’m just sorry that… my ways of helping her countless times didn’t work.”
Gwin added that prior to the incident, he allowed her to remain on the sidewalk for days and tried to call the police and other government services to get her help.
His 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.
The gallery shares a wall with a restaurant called the Barbarossa Lounge, where Gwin was seen leaning against a gate in the video. Gwin is not affiliated with the restaurant
Internet detectives attempting to identify the perpetrator initially assumed Gwin was linked to the restaurant. But owner Arash Ghanadan debunked the claim when mountains of hate mail poured in.
“The Barbarossa Lounge has been made aware of a video that has started circulating on social media that was filmed outside of our small business,” Ghanadan told .
“We are extremely disappointed by the behavior of this person and do not support such actions in any way. We have been informed that further formal and media investigations are ongoing.’
Ghanadan added: “The past three years has been a tough time for our business with a pandemic. We barely survived and now our reputation is being ruined by a video that everyone mistakenly believes is related to our business.”
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
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.
“They need housing and/or services, and they need it immediately,” the Merchants Association said.
“Our community is struggling to recover from lost business, burglaries and endless vandalism/graffiti (often perpetrated by homeless people) and we implore you to take action.”