All-Out Brawl Breaks Out On Boardwalk, Includes Man With Large Pole

A fight took place with at least three purported homeless men Wednesday on the Venice Beach Boardwalk in California, KCAL reported.

A man with a large pole is seen on video charging another man who is fighting with a third man. A security guard tried to break up the fight, but it didn’t stop.

“It’s not an uncommon sight,” said Adam Merchant, assistant manager of the Fig Tree Restaurant, according to KCAL. Fights happen frequently and the homelessness crisis in California is hurting small businesses, Merchant said.

“With the restaurant being open until 9 or 10 o’clock, people are scared to come to the boardwalk past a certain time,” Merchant said, according to KCAL.

Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers were reportedly near the fight, but the men fighting weren’t arrested, according to KCAL.

The LAPD didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is trying to clear out the tents on the Venice Beach Boardwalk, Southern California’s most popular tourist attraction, according to KCAL.

Newsom signed a $100 billion California Comeback Plan to provide more housing and support to the homeless in his state, according to his site. “I don’t think homelessness can be solved – I know homelessness can be solved,” said Newsom.

The largest funding package for homelessness in California history will allocate $10.3 billion for affordable housing and $12 billion to help people off the streets while also demanding greater accountability from local governments, according to the site. The new funding includes $5.8 billion to add 42,000 new housing units and $3 billion dedicated to housing for people with the most behavioral and physical health needs.

“There just has to be more enforcement, I guess,” said Daniel Blum, according to KCAL. “You know what I mean, just gotta be strict about it so the boardwalk can be safe again.”

A federal judge in California issued an order in April that Los Angeles had to make housing available to homeless citizens living on Skid Row by the fall. Los Angeles must offer women and unaccompanied kids housing by July 19, and housing to families by Aug. 18.

The city of Elk Grove, near California’s capital, started a project in April to use gift cards to encourage the homeless to clean up after themselves. The homeless people will receive $20 gift cards each time they clean their tents

A report in March found that California accounted for more than half of all homeless veterans living on the streets in 2020. A total of 7,996 unsheltered veterans resided in California in 2020, 53% of all homeless people in the U.S.