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Homeless man recovers from attack and calls life on streets 'terrifying'

A homeless man is speaking out after he was attacked while knocked out in Downtown Jacksonville.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A homeless man is speaking out after he was attacked while knocked out in Downtown Jacksonville.

The incident was captured on the security camera of the law firm Plata and Schott.

Michael Hargis, 56, is the man who was laying on the sidewalk unconscious.

"I was out cold," he said.

Hargis said he doesn't remember what happened. Was he punched? Did he bump into someone and that person pushed him to the ground?

"I don't really remember after hitting the ground, I don't remember nothing," Hargis said. "I have four stitches and I can't really see out of my left eye right now."

Hargis has been living on the streets five years and that life on the streets for the homeless is dangerous.

"Ain't no respect out here for nobody,' Hargis said.

The video also shows a man kicking him while he was knocked out. Hargis said he heard of the video and he is glad it exists, but it doesn't answer many questions.

"I wonder if that was the same guy I bumped into or bumped into me," he said.

Hargis has neuropathy in his legs and said he may have lost his balance and bumped someone. He also said sometimes he just stops in the streets, unable to move and that offends those behind him.

He just doesn't know what provoked what happened.

"I'm at a loss for words with that part of the video," said Dawn Gilman.

Gilman runs the non-profit Changing Homeless. She said the entire video is disgusting, but what is even more heartbreaking is the person who kicked Hargis while he was down.

She said, unfortunately, the homeless become the victim of a crime more often than you can imagine.

"I think it is important for the public to know that it is much more likely for a homeless individual to be a victim of a crime than to commit a violent crime," Gilman said.

Hargis would like to know what happened. Was he attacked or shoved to the ground?

So far the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office has been unable to identify the person.

The attorneys in the law firm at Plata and Schott said what they heard from inside their office was screaming voices and then they saw Hargis falling to the concrete pavement.

Hargis is now working to find a permanent home; he is on a waiting list.

He said until he can move from being homeless to actually having a place he can call home, he won't feel completely safe living on the streets.

"It is a lil bit terrifying out here you know, not knowing exactly who it was because you know it can happen again," Hargis said.

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