HAVERHILL - A 51-year-old homeless man has died after another man punched him in the face outside a convenience store, police said.

The punch knocked the homeless man to the pavement, where he hit his head, police said.

Brian Sewasky, 25, of 567 Washington St., is charged with murder.

The victim, Patrick Donovan, was struck outside the Richdale store at 73 White St. at about 2 p.m. Wednesday and died at 8:05 p.m. Thursday in a Boston hospital, police said.

It was the second beating death this month in Haverhill.

Last week, two men were arraigned on murder charges for beating 20-year-old Paul Buckley to death. He died of injuries related to multiple skull fractures, police said. Two Haverhill cousins - Joseph Manzi, 20, and Stephen Purpura, 17, are charged.

Sewasky was arraigned yesterday in Haverhill District Court as his mother wept in the public seating area. He is being held without bail until a probable cause hearing Feb. 27.

The attack was witnessed by a 35-year-old homeless man, who identified Sewasky in a photograph, according to court documents.

Sewasky's lawyer, William O'Hare of Salem, Mass., said he questions whether his client was identified correctly.

O'Hare made a motion to allow his client to hide from television and newspaper cameras in the courtroom so the possible witness pool would not be tainted by seeing Sewasky's image. Judge Patricia Dowling ruled against him, making the defendant stand to face her. Sewasky is 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 150 pounds, the police report says.

O'Hare described the death as a "horrible thing" in which the assailant "did not expect this kind of grave consequence."

"It's a horrible situation, and I'm sure the Donovans are distraught," O'Hare said.

According to court documents, Donovan and Sewasky had a brief encounter outside the store. Donovan was punched, and Sewasky left the scene.

The documents also give these details: When police arrived at the store, Donovan was sitting on the porch of a neighboring building. His 20-year-old daughter, Meaghan Donovan, was with him. She happened to be driving by when the assault happened and stopped. She also identified Sewasky.

Police said Donovan was answering questions asked by ambulance workers. He told them he had been drinking all day, police said.

Donovan was taken to Merrimack Valley Hospital, but the medical scanning machine was broken so he was transferred to Lawrence General Hospital. He was later taken to Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, where he died Thursday night from his injuries.

Inside the courtroom yesterday, Sewasky kept his head bowed. A woman identified as his mother cried.

"I love you," she yelled to her son as he was led away after the hearing.