Random Attacker Poured Hot Diarrhea on California Woman
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – While a woman was walking near the Hollywood Walk of Fame at night and was getting into her car, a homeless man ran across Hollywood Boulevard towards her.
Heidi Van Tassel was having a good evening with her friends and eating at an authentic Thai Restaurant. She had parked her car in Hollywood. A man suddenly and randomly pulled her out of her vehicle, dragged her into the middle of the street, and poured a hot bucket of diarrhea feces all over her head, according to public records and Van Tassel’s account of the incident.
Heidi Van Tassel told reporters that, “It was diarrhea. Hot liquid. I was soaked, and it was coming off my eyelashes and into my eyes.
Paramedics who came to treat me said there was so much of it on me, that it looked like the man was saving it up for a month.”
Van Tassel was immediately taken to the Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital shortly after the repulsive attack. The woman was then tested for any infectious diseases that may have been caused by coming into contact with the feces. Van Tassel will have to be retested every few months.
“It was all inside my car because it was so much. He just kept pouring it and splattering it all over me,” Tassel said.
Van Tassel says she was told by the Los Angeles Police Department that they’d be investigating the crime, but when she made phone calls to the LAPD they went unanswered.
The woman was also told by police that they promised to have their victims’ advocate get in contact with her to offer services, but she never got that call.
“It’s so traumatic. The PTSD that I’m dealing with is beyond anything that I’ve ever felt. There needs to be some kind of help for the victims of these crimes,” Van Tassel stated.
The attacker has been identified as Jere Blessings, who’s been taken to jail on charges of battery. Mr Blessings is being described as a transient who has “schizophrenia and psychotic disorders,” according to records.
“He doesn’t need jail time. He needs mental health care. I have empathy for him. Because he needs help,” Van Tassel mentioned.
Mr Blessings was able to get some help, but it only lasted two months. A judge sent him to a residential facility that cares for people who have mental issues, but he was released in August.
The attack was recorded on security footage from nearby businesses, and the officer’s body cams captured the aftermath. However, the businesses and LAPD wouldn’t release the recordings, even after Van Tassel asked to see them.
Van Tassel was in tears, and said, “It was awful, and it changed my life.”
According to the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, Mr. Blessings is now back on the streets, which Van Tassel is worried about.
Van Tassel expressed her concern, and said, “I will never, ever, forget his face. What’s the next thing he’s going to do to somebody? If he would’ve had a knife, for sure he would’ve stabbed me.”
Video courtesy of NBCWashington.com
