Heidi Van Tassel had poo thrown over her on the streets of LA. CREDIT: NBC4
A woman has described the horrific moment a homeless man threw a bucket of diarrhoea over her in a random attack.
Heidi Van Tassel was dragged out of her car into the middle of the street before Jere Blessings attacked her near Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
The Californian woman said she has suffered with PTSD after being splattered with the ‘hot liquid faeces’.
She told NBC4: ‘I was soaked, and it was coming off my eyelashes and into my eyes.’
She had been out for dinner with friends and was getting ready to drive home when Blessings sprinted towards her.
He tipped the bucket and its vile contents over her as she screamed for help.
‘It was all inside my car because it was so much. He just kept pouring it and splattering it all over me,’ she said.
After calling the emergency services, Van Tassel was rushed to hospital for treatment.
She was tested for infectious diseases as a result of coming into contact with the faeces and will need to be retested every three months.
Blessings was charged with battery and sentenced to two months in a residential facility for people with mental health issues.
Described as a ‘transient with schizophrenia and psychotic disorders’, Blessings was released in August and is now back in the community.
But despite the horrific nature of the attack, Ms Van Tassel said Blessings needs mental health care rather than jail time.
She said: ‘I have empathy for him. Because he needs help.’
Talking about the aftermath of the attack, Ms Van Tassel said it has changed her life and she now struggles with PTSD as a result.
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