Republican Mayoral Candidate Crony Sprayed Homeless Man With Mace Allegedly "Unprovoked"

Courtesy of witness

Several witnesses told The Burner that they saw Joseph Souhara, the right-hand man to Republican Mayoral candidate Rachael Savage, spray a homeless person with bear mace "unprovoked" last month. The "Savage Citizens" pair have not welcomed media scrutiny of the incident — Souhara threatened to sue for defamation in the first line in his response to The Burner’s request for comment. But those familiar with Souhara and Savage’s politics can hardly feign a performative gasp at the allegations. 

At around 4:20pm on March 16, patrons at the Broadway location of Vivace jumped up from their espressos when they heard screaming outside of the store. Patrons recall Souhara macing a man who witnesses say appeared to be unhoused. Photos show Souhara holding a white canister of what appears to be Sabre Frontiersman Bear Attack Deterrent. Moments later, Savage, who owns the nearby "metaphysical boutique" The Vajra, came outside, claiming the man had threatened her.

All witnesses that spoke with The Burner independently described the attack as “unprovoked.” The man, according to their accounts, came into Vivace about two hours prior to the attack, ordered a coffee, and then quietly enjoyed his drink at a table in front of the cafe with his small dog. The Burner made several attempts to find the victim, but could not reach him for comment. 

One witness recalled the man falling from the chair to his knees, clutching his face, and begging for someone to call the police. 

“I haven’t heard someone scream like that in forever,” a witness told The Burner. 

Moments later, the estimated two dozen patrons started to feel the sting of mace waft into the cafe. One witness joked that as a Capitol Hill resident, they had felt the burn of chemical weapons during the Black Lives Matter protests near the police precinct, but the bear mace felt especially potent. 

One witness recalled “panic” among the patrons. Some patrons took refuge in an enclosed area in the business, while workers confronted Souhara and Savage and tended to the man outside.

The Seattle Fire Department call log database confirms that medics arrived on the scene at 4:35pm and stayed until about 5pm. Workers waited around until 7:30pm, but the police never came to the scene despite calls, sources report. 

Vivace management did not respond to The Burner’s request for comment. 

Souhara told The Burner a different story. 

In an email to The Burner, Souhara claimed that the man threatened Savage after she “politely and repeatedly asked him to stop harassing customers and move from near The Vajra door.” Souhara came in for back up and asked “calmly and politely” for the man to leave, “as that approach usually works,” he said. Souhara claims the man cursed at him and threatened to stab him.

“I felt in fear for my life and defended myself, my business and my customers and in self defense pepper sprayed  the man in front of The Vajra,” Souhara wrote in an email. 

He wrote later in the email, “Unfortunately, threats and harassment and violence are an all too common occurrence at every business on Broadway. Employees and business owners all routinely have to make decisions regarding their safety because the city has not done its job to create a safe neighborhood commercial zone.”

While witnesses recall the man sitting at the table near Vivace's door, Souhara claimed that the man walked over to Vivace after he sprayed him. In Souhara's version of events, the man fell down in front of Vivace and when he tried to get back up, Souhara sprayed him a second time to “make sure he was temporarily incapacitated.” 

The Burner asked Souhara if The Vajra could provide security camera footage to verify their side of the story. He did not respond by time of press. 

“You are very confused about Rachael and myself,” Souhara wrote. “Rachael Savage is a person of high integrity and good judgement. She demonstrates great courage and character in working to help the addicted and the severely mentally ill get better care and in helping the residents and employees of Broadway to have safer living and working conditions. That is what our campaign is about.”

But public opinion does not seem very sympathetic to the “Savage Citizens” duo. After the March 16 incident, a post on Reddit titled “Fuck The Vajra owner and friend” stirred a small wave of online outrage, garning more than 1,200 upvotes and 300 comments.

“Fuck those two and please PLEASE do not support that business, they are terrible people,” the Redditor wrote. 

The March 16 incident is just another chapter in their ongoing feud with Seattle’s political left. 

Souhara and Savage launched their “Savage Citizens” campaign last summer to rail against an 120-unit supportive housing building on Belmont Ave and pressure elected officials to call in the U.S. military to bolster the Seattle Police Department’s response to drug use. Savage said that if they failed (they did), she would run for Mayor in 2025.

But we can all blame Republican Attorney General candidate Pete Serrano for thrusting Savage upon the public late last September when his campaign’s short, semi-viral clip made Savage Twitter’s main character of the day. 

In the now-infamous clip, Savage makes a Haunted Underground tour of simply using public transit. Serrano notice Savage recoiling as they entered the Capitol Hill light rail station. Serrano said, “Alright, do you not want to go down?” 

“Well, I’m with you guys, but I, uh, I feel…” Savage stammered

and Serrano interjected, “If you’re not comfortable, we don’t have to go. We can turn around.” 

But bravely, Savage resolved to join the thousands of Seattlites who ride public transit everyday without issue: “No, I’ll go with you guys. It’s good. You need to see this,” she said.

During this gripping drama, the person holding the camera zoomed in to focus on a Black man sitting (exceptionally normally) on a bench. The zoom caught attention on social media, with critics accusing Serrano and Savage of racistly implying that the mere presence of a Black person made the station feel unsafe.

At the time, Savage told The Stranger that she was not afraid of the man in the video and called the zoom “unskillful,” but not intentionally racist. 

Savage has continued to post poverty porn videos on the Savage Citizen’s Twitter account, but now to promote her bid for Mayor. According to the PDC, Savage has raised $3,800 or about 2% of the funding behind incumbent Mayor Bruce Harrell. In other words, she’s very unlikely to advance through the primary.