SAN FRANCISCO– A San Francisco jury acquitted a homeless man Friday after he was accused of using a metal pipe to beat a businessman who suffered a broken jaw, skull fracture and traumatic brain injury in a videotaped attack that sparked debate crime and homelessness in the US. the city.
Garret Doty, 25, was charged with three counts of assault and battery for the April 5 beating death of Don Carmignani. Doty pleaded not guilty.
Prosecutors said Doty hit Carmignani in revenge. But Doty's lawyers said he acted in self-defense after Carmignani sprayed him with bear spray.
The attack on Carmignani, a businessman who briefly served on a fire department committee, came two days after the death of Cash App founder Bob Lee.
Lee's killing sparked a wave of criticism of city officials from top technology leaders. Among the critics was technology billionaire Elon Musk, who mourned Lee's death on Twitter and blamed San Francisco for what he called the city's lax attitude toward crime. A technical consultant awaits trial for Lee's murder.
The attack on Carmignani fueled the story of a city in chaos. But Doty's attorney argued that Doty acted in self-defense and released surveillance video that showed Carmignani spraying Doty before beginning to chase him while wielding a metal pipe.
Deputy Public Defender Kleigh Hathaway said Carmignani repeatedly doused unhoused people, including Doty, with bear spray.
“Self-defense can be fierce, effective and disabling,” Hathaway said. 'And why wouldn't that be the case? You are fighting for your life.”
In closing arguments Tuesday, Assistant District Attorney Kourtney Bell admitted that Carmignani had a history of aggression. He said he may have used bear spray at least once on unhoused people in the Marina District, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
A confrontation between Carmignani and Doty began after Doty and two others set up tents outside the home of Carmignani's parents, who live next door in the upscale Marina District. Carmignani said in an interview with KPIX-TV that he asked Doty to move because they were blocking his parents' entrance.
He said he called 911, but no one responded, so he went outside to talk to the homeless. and that the only thing he had on him was pepper spray.
“I didn't go there to fight anyone. I try to get them on the road, to go to the park,” Carmignani told the television station.