SAN FRANCISCO — The daylight shooting of San Francisco 49ers rookie receiver Ricky Pearsall in an upscale shopping area has put the city’s safety in the national spotlight again, just weeks before voters elect a new mayor.
Mayor London Breed, who is running for re-election, has taken a more aggressive approach to cracking down on open-air drug dealing and clearing homeless encampments from city streets as she tries to convince voters that things have improved under her administration. But she acknowledged at a press conference over the weekend that the “horrific and rare” attack during an attempted robbery of Pearsall could undo her record.
“We are glad the victim is OK. But this incident sets us back from all the hard work we have done to make significant changes to public safety in San Francisco,” Breed said.
In San Francisco, property crime outpaces violent crimes like murder, rape, robbery and assault. Breed stressed that, but also said that “sometimes the data goes out the window when something like that happens.”
Pearsall was walking alone to his car shortly after 3:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon after shopping at high-end stores in Union Square when the teenage suspect spotted the NFL player “for his expensive watch,” San Francisco Police Sgt. Frank Harrell told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Pearsall attended an autograph session at the Cow Palace in Daly City earlier on Saturday and was seen wearing a Rolex Datejust, which can sell for just under $12,000, two watch experts told the newspaper.
A struggle ensued and both Pearsall and the 17-year-old suspect were struck by gunfire, police said. The suspect was shot in the arm.
The 49er rookie was shot in 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 exited his back without hitting any vital organs.
Breed’s leading candidate, Mark Farrell, a former interim mayor of San Francisco and a former city supervisor, took to social media shortly after the Pearsall attack to criticize Breed. Farrell is running on a public safety campaign — a top concern among San Francisco voters — and has said he will clear out all large tent encampments and beef up police staffing.
“Enough is enough,” Farrell posted on X. “If we want public safety in San Francisco, we need change at City Hall.”
Other critics pointed out the case on social media, saying it showed that people need to be careful about 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 thefts and robberies of people wearing expensive watches or jewelry in the Los Angeles area.
The reaction to Pearsall’s attack was reminiscent of that following the murder last year of Cash App founder Bob Lee, whose fatal stabbing shocked the tech industry. Lee’s death further fueled the anger public safety debate in San Francisco Twitter owner Elon Musk posted the following message on the social media site: “Violent crime in San Francisco is horrific and even when attackers are caught, they are often released immediately.”
Nima Momeni, a technical advisor who knew Lee, has been charged with his murder and is awaiting trial.
Pearsall, 23, was discharged Sunday from San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center. He was back at the team building on MondaySan Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch said Tuesday. The Niners placed Pearsall on the list of non-football injuries, Lynch said it gave him time to recover from the shooting and a shoulder injury that had limited him all summer.
The condition of the 17-year-old suspect, who was transported to the same hospital, was not released. The young male suspect is a resident of Tracy, California, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) east of San Francisco, police said.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins has not yet filed charges against him, and it is not yet known whether she will ask a judge to move the boy’s case from juvenile to adult court.
The teenage suspect was arrested about a block from where he allegedly confronted Pearsall. He was barefoot after his flip-flops fell off during the struggle with the football player, the Chronicle reported.
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 gunfire and rushed to the area. She told reporters she immediately treated Pearsall and kept him calm.
She used Pearsall’s shirt to put pressure on his chest wound and her baseball cap to press against the bullet 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 it wasn’t his time yet and she began to pray.
“You’re strong,” she told the Chronicle, she kept telling him. “Just concentrate on breathing.”
“And he listened,” Harrell said. “He calmed down, and that’s what I wanted him to do.”