The daylight shooting of San Francisco 49ers rookie receiver Ricky Pearsall in an upscale shopping district has once again put the city's safety in the national spotlight weeks before voters choose a new mayor.
Mayor London Breed, who is running for reelection, has taken a more aggressive approach against open-air drug dealing and clearing homeless encampments from city streets as she attempts to convince voters that things have improved under her administration. But she acknowledged that the “terrible and rare” attack during an attempted robbery against Pearsall could set back her achievements.
“We are glad that the victim will be OK. But this incident does set us back from all the hard work that we’ve done in order to make significant changes in public safety in San Francisco,” Breed said at a news conference over the holiday weekend.
Crime is down in San Francisco, where property crimes are more common than violent crimes such as murder, rape, robbery and assault. Breed highlighted that but said, “The data goes out the window sometimes when something happens like this.”
Pearsall, 23, was walking alone to his car shortly after 3:30 p.m. Saturday after shopping at luxury stores in Union Square when a teenage suspect spotted the NFL player “for his expensive watch,” San Francisco Police Sgt. Frank Harrell told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Pearsall was seen earlier Saturday wearing a Rolex Datejust, which can sell for about $12,000, two watch experts told the newspaper.
A struggle ensued and gunfire from the 17-year-old suspect’s gun struck both Pearsall and the teenager, who was shot in the arm, police said.
The 49er rookie was shot through the chest at close range, officials said. His mother, Erin Pearsall, posted on social media that the bullet went through the right side of her son’s chest and out his back without striking any vital organs.
The teenager was charged Tuesday with attempted murder, assault with a semiautomatic weapon and attempted second-degree robbery, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said.
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State law prevents Jenkins from charging a minor as an adult. But she said that if her investigation reveals the teenage suspect should be tried in adult court, she would request a judge to make a ruling on transferring the case, Jenkins said. She added that it was too early for her to make that determination.
“There will be accountability when people commit crimes, most certainly serious crimes of this nature, regardless of the status of the victim,” Jenkins said.
Breed, a centrist Democrat, is in a tough reelection battle and faces three serious opponents this year who say her administration has failed to deal with drug crimes, vandalism and theft. At Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s request, California National Guard lawyers and case analysts have been working fentanyl trafficking cases in San Francisco over the past year with the aim of dismantling them.
Breed’s main contender, Mark Farrell, a former interim San Francisco mayor and former city supervisor, took to social media shortly after the attack on Pearsall to criticize Breed. Farrell is running a campaign focused on public safety — a top concern among San Francisco voters — and says he will clear all large tent encampments and beef up police staffing.
“Enough is enough,” Farrell posted on the social platform X. “If we want public safety in San Francisco, then we need change in City Hall.”
Other critics pointed out the case on social media and said it showed people need to watch what they wear when walking around the city. In Los Angeles, police warned people wearing expensive jewelry they could become targets for thieves after a long string of brazen smash-and-grab thefts and robberies of people wearing expensive watches or jewelry in the Los Angeles region.
The response to the attack against Pearsall echoed that seen after the killing last year of Cash App founder Bob Lee, whose fatal stabbing shocked the tech industry. Lee’s death further enflamed debate over public safety in San Francisco, with top tech entrepreneurs posting about the killing on social media.
Nima Momeni, a tech consultant who knew Lee, was charged in his killing and is awaiting trial.
Pearsall was released Sunday from the San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center. He was back at the team facility on Monday, San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch said Tuesday. The Niners placed Pearsall on the non-football injury list, giving him time to recover from the shooting and a shoulder injury that had limited him all summer, Lynch said.
The condition of the suspect, who was transported to the same hospital, has not been disclosed. The young male suspect is a resident of Tracy, a city about 60 miles east of San Francisco, police said.
He was arrested about a block away from where he allegedly confronted Pearsall.
Lynch thanked San Francisco Sgt. Joelle Harrell, who is married to Sgt. Frank Harrell, and was the first officer on the scene after she heard gunshots and rushed to the area. She told reporters she gave Pearsall immediate treatment and kept him calm.
She used Pearsall’s shirt to create pressure on his chest wound and her baseball cap to press against the bullet's exit wound in his back. After Pearsall asked her if he was going to die, she told him to stay calm.
Joelle Harrell, a devout Catholic, told him no, it wasn't his time and she started praying.
“You’re strong,” she told the Chronicle she kept telling him. “Just focus on the breathing.”
“And he listened,” Harrell said. “He calmed down, and that’s what I wanted him to do.”
Union Square, located along the route of one of the city’s iconic cable cars, is known for its luxury shops, fine and casual restaurants, and numerous hotels. The downtown neighborhood was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic when many storefronts emptied.
More officers were deployed to the area after a series of robberies by mobs of people who smashed store windows and glass counters to steal luxury items made national headlines.
After many challenges, the shopping district has been undergoing a revival and this summer has been packed with tourists and local families, said Marisa Rodriguez, CEO of the Union Square Alliance.
The neighborhood, she said, is one of the safest in San Francisco and pointed out that the extra police presence led to the quick response by the officers who helped Pearsall and arrested the suspect.
“San Francisco is not getting a fair shake,” Rodriguez said. “Unfortunately, robberies are happening all over the world, probably every minute, but they’re not making headline news because it’s not election season.”
