San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, known for spectacular one-hand catches as a collegian, sustained a gunshot wound to the chest during an attempted robbery in San Francisco on Saturday. The rookie is in stable condition but the same can’t be said for the city, California criminal law, and the state of journalism.
“Police in San Francisco have identified a 17-year-old boy as the suspect in the shooting of 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall,” wrote Michael David Smith of NBC News. In similar style, Sara Smart, Homero De la Fuente and Dalia Faheid of CNN – three writers for a 521-word story – note that “a 17-year-old boy attempted to rob Pearsall at gunpoint as he was walking alone at around 3:30 p.m. PT, when an altercation broke out between the two, resulting in both of them suffering injuries.”
A male criminal suspect of 17 years merits description as a teen or juvenile. According to CNN, the “altercation” simply “broke out,” but it’s pretty clear what happened. The 17-year-old attempted to rob Pearsall, who gave no ground and fought back. Just so readers know, a gunshot to the chest is a “wound” not an “injury,” which implies that this was some sort of accident.
“Multiple shots were fired, and both Pearsall and the suspect were shot by the suspect’s gun,” NBC explains. “Gunfire from the suspect’s gun struck both Mr. Pearsall and the subject,” adds CNN, quoting a police statement. Guns do not fire all by themselves, without human agency. The suspect controlled the weapon so he obviously fired the shot that hit Pearsall in the chest. The receiver may have twisted the attacker’s arm so the second shot struck the shooter.
If Pearsall gained possession of the gun and squeezed off a shot at the assailant, his 49er teammates would have no problem with it. Either way, it’s the fault of the attacker who was not “identified,” which requires, a name, photos and so forth. The unidentified juvenile who shot Ricky Pearsall will be charged in juvenile court, which also has a back story. The 2016 Proposition 57 took away prosecutors’ ability to try juveniles as adults. That decision must now be made by juvenile court judges, so San Francisco district attorney Brooke Jenkins, who in 2022 defeated the vile Chesa Boudin, won’t make the call.
Defense attorneys sought to apply Prop 57 retroactively to retry convicted double murderer Daniel Marsh, one of the worst criminals in state and national history, as a juvenile. As I explained in A Shut and Open Case, Marsh’s decision at the age of 15 to torture, murder and mutilate Oliver Northup and Claudia Maupin was part of his planning. That was in 2013, and aspiring juvenile murderers now enjoy more advantages.
In September 2019, Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 1391, which bars all prosecution of those under 16 in adult court. “The opposition of certain crime victims and certain families to this measure is intense,” wrote Brown. “I have listened to that opposition carefully and it has weighed on me.” It couldn’t have weighed much because Brown signed the measure. As a result, anyone under the age of 16 could rob and murder the entire San Francisco 49ers team, be tried only in juvenile court, serve time in a soft juvenile prison, and gain release at age 25.
At this writing Ricky Pearsall is in “serious but stable condition.”
Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.