The man severely beaten in a weekend street robbery on East Harrison says that despite his injuries — including the loss of his two front teeth — his main concern right now is getting a very important wristwatch back. Meanwhile, we have also heard from a man helping to lead an effort to bring a community safety group back to the streets of Capitol Hill.

Guillaume Mauger, the man beaten and robbed early Sunday morning, made the plea in CHS comments for any help possible in returning a wristwatch that has important sentimental value:

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Thanks for posting the info on Sunday morning’s mugging. I was the victim of that attack, and wanted to add a request for any information about my Tag Heuer watch that was stolen from me in the attack. Of course I’d love to hear about any of the other things: cell phone, wallet, and keys were stolen too. But unlike the others the watch had sentimental value and is not replaceable. I know this is a long shot, but just in case, it was a silver/stainless tag heuer watch with a white face and was self-winding (no battery: you can see the inner workings through the clear quartz backing.

fingers crossed!

-Guillaume

Guillaume tells CHS via e-mail that after extensive tests at the emergency room including x-rays and a CT scan, his most significant injury is the loss of two front teeth. Everything else, he says, is cuts and bruises.

He also says his attackers had a plan. “I think it’s also worth noting that the assailants knew what they were doing — by attacking from behind, they never gave me a chance to see their faces, and got away quickly while I was still recovering from the blows.”

Guillaume also has some advice:

One of the commenters on the blog mentioned carrying a money clip with the minimum amount of stuff and leaving his watch at home. I think that’s smart — my watch may have been what sent them after me. Another good point is that Thomas Ave is of course more well lit and has more traffic — probably better to walk down that street or even take a taxi if need be.

Following attacks like this — and this recent incident being investigated as a hate crime in which assailants threw rocks at two transgendered women on Broadway there is a group organizing to revive a community-based effort to provide additional safety on the Hill’s nighttime streets. Here are details on a new Q-Patrol from Sister Karma Za Betch:

Yes, there is an effort with former members and potential new members of Q-Patrol to form some type of a resurrection of Q-Patrol appropriate to the needs of todays community.

I have pledged my support of it re-organizing, both personally and with my efforts as a Sister of Perpetual Indulgence. Work has also been started to obtain the groups 501c3 status as a non-profit.

Also, we are underway to establish the present needs and wants of Capitol Hill residents.

Anybody interested in becoming part of the organization or just have thoughts or concerns can email –

[email protected]

This isn’t the first time reviving Seattle’s Q-Patrol has been brought up, of course. You can read about their previous revival in 2003 here and why they faded away here. Seattle Gay News described the group thusly:

Q-Safety Patrol was a group of committed volunteers who patrolled the Capitol Hill Neighborhood to prevent hate crimes and other violent crimes. They walked the Broadway and Pike/Pine corridors in groups of 4-6 individuals dressed in easily recognizable uniforms to act as a visual deterrent and when necessary, physically intervened in violent situations. They served the community for over a decade and were credited in part for the notable reduction in violent crime on Capitol Hill.

In August, Portland’s new Q Patrol took to the streets. Sounds like Seattle isn’t far behind.

While it does feel like Capitol Hill has had a rather rough summer for street crime, it’s important to remember the changes in media and technology that pull these stories out of the shadows and onto your computer screens. Street robberies and, yes, even hateful acts, have been part of life on Capitol Hill and in the rest of the city for a long, long time. This comment from seandr sums up the situation well:

You need look at the actual crime stats before jumping to any conclusions about crime trends. You’ll likely find that Capitol Hill (and Seattle in general) is no less safer now than it was in the last 20 years.

I’ve been on the Hill and Squire Park for almost 20 years, and the only thing that’s changed is that in the past I was aware of only a small fraction of the crimes. With the advent of neighborhood blogs, I know of almost every single significant crime that happens.

When reading all the mayhem and violence in the news, it’s hard not to feel a sense of despair, but try to keep it in perspective.

CHS is due for some statistical looks at the latest criminal activity on the Hill. Our last big dig into Capitol Hill’s numbers in comparison with the rest of the city was published mid-summer. We also looked at Capitol Hill robberies in isolation — but that, too, was a ways back now. Time to break out the spreadsheets and get to work.