“The homeless man’s name is Charles”

photo by Diane Krauthamer

“Dear PoPville,

I just found out my neighbor, a homeless man named Charles, [was shot] at the hand of a wanted serial killer. Ed. Note: The police report says: “On Tuesday, March 8, 2022 at approximately 1:21 am, members of the Fifth District responded to the 1700 block of H Street, Northeast for the report of a shooting. Upon arrival, members located an adult male victim suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. The victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.” It’s so easy to ignore and walk past the homeless, but I wanted to take a moment to share the little things I knew about him.

Charles lived on the corner of 17th and H Street NE–or within a radius of a few blocks–for the past three years. He would often stop me while I was walking my dog (Coco), so he could give Coco pets and left over chicken as a treat. Charles noticed little things about you–like if your eyes were bloodshot from crying or your gray hair was peaking through–and would inquire.

He took care of himself to the degree that he could: brushing his teeth daily, washing his face and moisturizing his skin.

Charles always wanted to give even though he had nothing. He would drop off a ball he found for Coco, or share food that had been given to him.

Charles loved my dog Coco and told him so daily on our morning walks. He often told me to take care of his “baby.”

I believe Charles served in the military at some point, and he often rambled about cops and being locked up. I believe Charles may have had children. He carried around a ripped up birth certificate in his jacket he once showed me. Charles often talked about someone named “Yancey” and a relative that played for the Florida Marlins.

He struggled with mental health issues, the most obvious one being alcoholism.

I sit here tonight thinking of these daily brief interactions over the past year, and the brutal, inhumane end to his life at the hands of a serial killer. Charles was a vulnerable human–giving and imperfect–that just didn’t deserve to suffer the way he did.“