The neighborhood, with blocks of brick apartment buildings and rowhouses, teems with children playing on the sidewalks, biking through the streets and flocking to the playground at Vidalia Park.

Luis Sepulveda, the state assemblyman representing the area, noted improvements that the neighborhood has seen in recent years, like a decrease in crime and the development of new housing. Still, he acknowledged enduring troubles that are difficult to scrub away: Unemployment is high; schools struggle; serious crime is still a problem.

Assemblyman Sepulveda lives only a couple of blocks from the alley where the girl was assaulted. He routinely walks the streets, talking to his constituents. Months after the assault, they still frequently ask him for updates.

“People have asked me if there’s been any arrest in the rape,” he said, “if there has been any progress in the investigation.”

Some tell him they think the police have not done enough, but he said that was a misconception he was trying to correct. Soon after the assault, he encountered residents — particularly, he noticed, young fathers — who told him the assailant should hope that the police find him before they do. Some in the neighborhood recalled seeing fliers posted near the scene with messages to the same effect. By now, though, those signs are gone and that fervor has been tempered.

“It’s something that really touched a raw nerve in the community,” Mr. Sepulveda said. “Whenever there’s a crime against a child, it’s a whole different ballgame. It’s a whole different perspective. It’s going to continue to galvanize this community.”