Alert Nurse Directs Police To Man Suspected In Attempted Rape

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A conscientious nurse helped police catch up with a man suspected of attempted rape in Boyle Heights Saturday.

The man allegedly tried to sexually assault the woman around 3:30 a.m. as she left the Eastside Luv bar, LAPD reports.

Investigators say she fought back and wasn't hurt.

But it was the man's injuries - lacerations to his face and neck - that prompted him to seek medical attention. An attentive nurse matched the injuries and his description to an alert police had put out Saturday morning.

Police were able to arrest the man, whom they have not yet identified.

The incident has the neighborhood on edge.

"Very scared, the only reason I came down here is because there's a lot of people," said Boyle Heights resident Maria Saldivar, who was at a carnival close to Eastside Luv bar.

Coincidentally, and just in time, community advocates are hosting a Take Back the Night just feet away from the scene of Saturday's alleged crime.

"Every day we have to denounce violence against women and gender-based violence," said Kimberly Bautista of Justice For My Sister Collective. "And the fact that this is happening right now, I mean, it's just another call to mobilize."

Saldivar said, "We should actually join together to do stuff like that because it affects everybody, not just one person."

Hundreds are expected to attend the Boyle Heights Take Back the Night event. It's being held from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Sunday in Mariachi Plaza.