If anyone frequents downtown Tampa, you are sure to see this woman. She looks old, weathered, and has big Farrah Fawcett hair. She is usually sighted around the Tampa theater area.

Anyway, shes always talking or yelling to herself and manages to say the darndest things. I remember sitting in traffic and she turned to my car and screamed "Stop ****ing my mother!"

I usually laugh it off, but one night she was mouthing off to nobody in particular(in vulgar fashion as usual), and there were families around, walking to the theater. This bothered me.

She most likely has a list of disorders and addictions to cause her to act like this, maybe tourettes. How can I go about fixing this problem without her going ballistic on me? (Something short of calling the cops, because I'm sure they are well aware of her).

Social worker? Department of family services? She appears to have a mental condition (which may be the reason she is homeless to begin with)... I'm not sure if they can do anything though.

Either that or maybe find one of the churches that help with the homeless and see what they can do. It's going to be hard to commincate with her and get through to her if she does have a mental problem. And being homeless, it's likely she might have some type of substance abuse too. So I wouldn't advise you to go talk to her, but someone that is use to dealing with the homeless.

I remember her. I suspect she just lashes out occasionally in an effort to get a free 72-hour stay in a Baker Act facility. You could suggest the police stop her and ask her some questions pertaining to mental health--if she answers that she thinks about hurting herself or other people (which she probably will) they can hold her for 72 hours. She gets a bed in an air-conditioned facility and three squares a day and has to talk to a psychiatrist for a little while. More than likely she's done this before and isn't quite crazy enough to rate actually being institutionalized, and is just aiming for the three-day stay at what, to a homeless person, amounts to Club Med. Some of the homeless I remember from when I lived downtown were decent people. Some were too drugged or drunk to be threatening. And some were smart enough to massage the system when they wanted something. It's a shame she's a nuisance but unless and until she violates the law she's unlikely to go away. If she was truly disturbed enough to need medical attention she'd have gotten it by now; if it's the woman I remember she's been lingering around downtown off and on for at least six years.

...run her over....oops. I guess that was too much. lol. I don't know what can really be done, but there is always some crazy person screaming somewhere. I feel bad, but it seems like they are just living doing nothing, and this may come off harsh, but if they can't be treated then...put them down