Ventura residents hold rally after father's fatal stabbing

VENTURA, Calif. (KABC) -- Ventura residents held a rally on Thursday to demand action from the city after a father was stabbed to death in front of his family.

About 100 people rallied at the Ventura Promenade to vent their frustration over what to do with the homeless there.

Two weeks ago, the situation turned violent. Anthony Mele, Jr. was having dinner with his wife and their 5-year-old daughter at the Aloha Steakhouse when, according to Ventura police, Jamal Jackson, a homeless man familiar with law enforcement, allegedly stabbed Mele in the neck. The victim died the next day.

"I think it comes down to that we're not taking care of our mentally ill, we're not taking care of the homeless situation, but I also do think that across the board that Ventura County in general is notorious for not upholding the laws," said resident Kim Cubero.

The rally was organized by the group Quality of Life-Ventura. They said they're going to gather data which includes crime stats and the number of homeless people in order to build a case to sue the city to do more for residents' safety.

"The cities are just, they're accepting the premise that the guys on the street want to get off, want to change their lives. No they don't. The ones that want to change their lives are off the street," said Paul White of Quality of Life-Ventura.

The group said that they plan on taking legal action if nothing, in their eyes, is being done about making the Ventura Promenade safer.