The attacker's description and information about the vehicle in which he escaped was provided by a homeless man, Michael Gillespie, who'd also been attacked. Police, using Gillespie's tips, picked up 25-year old Edgar Mora whose arraignment on murder charges takes place today.

Wilmes went into a coma after he fell to the sidewalk and later died at California Pacific Medical Center. His lover, Tim Carrol, was with him.

The suspect, after choosing Wilmes at random, had let loose with a barrage of homophobic sentiments as he bludgeoned his human prey before fleeing by auto, accompanied by a female companion. Bystanders believe that the suspect's rage had been aggravated because he was intoxicated.

Mark Dreier, owner of the Loading Dock, told a San Francisco Chronicle reporter, Glen Martin, that the attack could have happened anywhere. Some San Franciscans brushed off the murder as atypical, insisting that alcohol made the crime a kind of isolated incident.

But the prevailing mood Sunday in the Castro District, according to other reports, was anger. Tom Ammiano, a long-time activist and San Francisco Supervisor told reporters that a multitude of phone calls from his constituents were filled with outrage.

Ammiano had praise for witness Michael Gillespie, indicating that he would recommend a city commendation for the homeless man. Using the occasion as a example of one person's "community involvement" the gay Supervisor, who has often doubled as a popular San Francisco comedian, said Gillespie shows how community-minded people can make a difference.

"Bigotry against gays is pervasive," Ammiano said, "and all of us have traumatic experiences to one degree or another."

Ammiano told of how he'd once been pursued in his car by a gay basher and how the ugly circumstance had continued to haunt him.

Among the recommendations made by the city Supervisor was a return to whistle-blowing campaigns. San Franciscans in every neighborhood were given whistles. Whenever trouble erupted, he said, the citizenry alerted both each other and the police. Ammiano will introduce a resolution to re-introduce similar whistle programs.