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The decision to indict a San Francisco gallery owner on assault charges for spraying an uninhabited person with a garden hose has sparked renewed controversy.
It’s been a week and a half since a video surfaced showing San Francisco gallery owner Collier Gwynn blasting homeless people outside his company.
Gwynn was arrested and charged Wednesday.
Pastor Amos Brown, president of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP, said he has spoken extensively with Gwynn about the incident since then.
Brown told NBC Bay Area on Thursday that he disagrees with San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins’ decision to indict Gwynn, but was careful not to criticize the decision.
“I’m not interested in punitive justice. I’m interested in restorative justice,” he said.
Gwynn was not available for comment when NBC Bay Area arrived at his gallery on Thursday.
Instead, the person who said he was an employee there told NBC Bay Area through a door speaker that Gwynn had been taken into custody but was released after being cited. I said no.
Brown told NBC Bay Area that he has been in contact with Gwynn since last week.
“He confessed. He said sorry. I spoke to him several times,” Brown said.
Brown is much more critical of how the city has dealt with unhoused people and the growing drug crisis in recent years.
He cited recent intrusions at his church, the Third Baptist, and other congregations in the city.
“We end up in this kind of unfortunate situation because the political body in this city has not addressed the problem of the homeless in a comprehensive, holistic and compassionate way.”
Brown added that the incident with Gwynn could be a teaching moment when it comes to being uncontained.
He added that it is everyone’s responsibility to handle the situation, including those who are not detained.
“Even homeless people should be held accountable,” Brown said.
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