South Bay heckler who spewed vulgarities at women is protected by 1st Amendment, police say
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For months, a man has been pestering residents in the South Bay’s beach cities with offensive remarks and vulgar language while filming the altercations and posting the videos on social media.
The disturbances have upset residents, prompting complaints to local police who have had little recourse because his speech is protected by the 1st Amendment and no victims came forward.
On Thursday, Hermosa Beach police announced a resolution to the unusual community problem: The man was placed on a mental health hold that could keep him off the streets for 48 hours or longer.
The man, who police declined to identify, was most recently spotted posting videos at the Hermosa Beach Pier, on nearby streets and in some cases inside businesses, approaching women, using “vulgar language and vulgar innuendos,” according to authorities.
On Wednesday, the Hermosa Beach Police Department received numerous calls about a person who was live-streaming on Instagram from the Hermosa Beach Pier Plaza and Pier Avenue area around 1:45 p.m.
“The videos that the person was live-streaming included offensive and frankly disgusting content,” said Hermosa Beach Police Chief Paul LeBaron. “This person was trying to seek reactions from passerbys and the community at large who saw the videos after they were posted.”
When officers arrived at the pier the man was gone and no one identified themselves as a victim of any crime.
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The videos that the man posted online showed that he was trying to provoke a reaction, but “none of the videos depicted a crime that we were able to pursue without a victim who was being targeted,” LeBaron said.
Around 3 p.m., the police department received another round of calls about a similar disturbance at the pier plaza.
On Instagram, around the same time, the same man was shown live-streaming until someone apparently took his phone away and the live stream ended. It’s unclear who took the phone or what happened to it, however; officials are investigating the loss of the phone.
Police said a group of citizens had surrounded the man at the pier plaza and responding officers were able to intervene.
Once again, no victims came forward and the responding officers were not able to take any enforcement action.
The man eventually left the area.
Early Thursday morning, the same man had an interaction with the Redondo Beach police and was taken to a hospital, where he is being held for a mental health evaluation.
Mental health holds are typically for 48 hours but can be extended depending on the case, officials said.
“If he does choose to come back to Hermosa Beach, our officers know who he is,” and can contact the mobile mental health and crisis response team, HB Cares, LeBaron said.
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The Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach police departments have also had contact with the same man causing similar disturbances in their communities.
“Their investigations have also shown that no crimes have been determined and no victims have stepped up to say there were crimes based on their interactions with this person,” LeBaron said.
The police chief said he knows community members are frustrated that the man can’t be arrested for harassment.
“The short answer is speech, even the vulgar and disgusting speech that this guy is using, is protected by our Constitution,” he said. “There is no actual crime of harassment, and if there were, we would certainly enforce it.”
Based on the film interactions, if a victim came forward, the man could be investigated for fighting or provoking a fight, willfully and maliciously disturbing another person or uttering offensive words likely to provoke immediate violent reactions — all offenses that, police say, are citable misdemeanors and would not lead to jail time.
Police are asking any victims approached by this man to contact them at (310) 318-0360.
“What we really want to avoid, or encourage people to avoid, is this vigilante mentality that [the community] needs to take the law into their own hands,” LeBaron said. “It doesn’t help.”
