Transient Pleads No Contest To Attacking Man In Venice

VENICE, CA — A transient pleaded no contest Thursday in connection with an apparently random attack in which a man was knocked unconscious in Venice.

Macio Martinez Harger, 45, was immediately sentenced to 270 days in jail and two years probation following his plea to felony battery with serious bodily injury, according to Greg Risling of the District Attorney's Office.

Harger allegedly approached the man about 12:40 p.m. June 6 in the 500 block of Ocean Front Walk and punched him in his face, according to a Los Angeles Police Department statement.

The man lost consciousness after he was struck, and Harger fled the scene, police said.

Paramedics took the man to a hospital, where he was treated for "serious injuries."

Harger, who was living in a homeless encampment nearby, was arrested two days later by officers from the LAPD's Pacific Division.

He has remained behind bars since then, according to jail records.

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