Following an attack on a 57-year-old gay man in October that left him in a coma, and an admission by police that they cant increase patrols in Sacramentos LGBTQ+ gayborhood, residents in Californias capital citys Lavender Heights district are reviving a citizen patrol they call the Lavender Angels.Alvin Prasad was attacked outside the Badlands nightclubas he exited the bar with his daughter on Halloween night. Then, 24-year-old suspect Sean Wesley Payton Jr. made disparaging remarks about Prasad and his flamboyant costume and punching him, and making him collapse onto the ground. Doctors say the result was permanent damage to the front and back of Prasads brain. He remains in a coma. Related His brutal attack left a gay elder in a coma. Now hes facing hate crime charges. At a contentious community meeting with police and local leaders two weeks ago at the areas LGBT Center, residents voiced their frustration over a lack of police presence in the district.I was beaten. I was bit four times. I was shoved into a car twice, one man recounted. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Im tired of feeling bullied out of our own community, said another.This is a really important, emotional issue, particularly following the attack on our community member who is close to us here at the center, the Centers director David Heitstuman told KCRA News. And so its really important for folks to be able to express how theyre feeling about that, and for us to have a discussion about what ongoing threats there are.City council member Phil Pluckebaum was frank about the prospect of increased police patrols in the area.Ill be a little less diplomatic, he told the packed community room. The Sacramento PD is about half staffed, and were not going to be able to make staffing level commitments to meet any kind of service level for the district.So community members are stepping in to fill the void, reviving a citizen patrol that walked the districts streets over a decade ago: The Lavender Angels.Lavender Heights resident George Raya, known by many as the Mayor of Midtown, explained, The police need more eyes and ears on the street. Citizen patrols do that. Raya recalled how the Lavender Angels first landed in the gayborhood in 2012, after a bartender at a local bar started hearing from customers that theyd been victims of hate crimes.Everybody had their cell phone, a flashlight, a vest and a whistle, and we had a special number with the police so we could call and get instant response, Roya told CBS News Sacramento.There have been nearly a hundred bias-related incidents in the area reported to police over the last two years, but the calls dont tell the whole story, Roya said. A lot of crimes go unreported.If you are a victim of crime, report it. If police dont know that theres a problem in a neighborhood, theyre not going to assign resources.The Lavender Angels are there to help observe and report, he said, and hopefully bring back a measure of safety and security to a community that needs it.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.