Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, the 49ers’ first-round draft pick this past spring, is in serious but stable condition after being shot in the chest during a robbery attempt Saturday afternoon near San Francisco’s Union Square, the 49ers confirmed.
In a press conference Saturday evening, San Francisco Chief of Police William Scott said the suspect who allegedly attempted to rob Pearsall is a 17-year-old male from Tracy. Scott said both were injured by the suspect’s gun, and that multiple shots were fired, but would not provide further detail, saying the investigation was ongoing. Scott said the gun was recovered, and the suspect was arrested.
Pearsall walked to an ambulance under his own power while a paramedic applied pressure to his chest and back with a bandage of sorts, as shown on a X/Twitter posted by KTVU’s Zak Sos.
“He’s good. Thank god!!!!” 49ers teammate Deebo Samuel posted on X/Twitter about Pearsall, adding emojis reflecting a prayer and crossed fingers.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed and the District Attorney Brooke Jenkins also spoke at the press conference. “This was a terrible and rare incident in Union Square,” Breed said. “But statistics don’t matter, when incidents like this occur, what matters is supporting the victim and holding those accountable who break our laws and endanger the lives of others,” she said.
Jenkins said her office expects to make a charging decision by the middle of next week. “This is a setback, because a lot of that hard work and the data, you know, goes out the window sometimes when something happens like this, and my hope is that we can demonstrate that this is an isolated incident, one where our officers acted swiftly, and the things that we put into place and how they were designed led to an arrest and will lead to accountability.”
“There will be accountability for those who commit these types of acts in San Francisco,” Jenkins said. She explained that the charges will be filed in the juvenile court system because the suspect is not an adult. “We are not a city that will be tolerant of these of this type of conduct.”
Captain Justin Schorr, spokesperson for the San Francisco Fire Department, confirmed that his department transported two patients to the hospital Saturday afternoon for suspected gunshot wounds, but could not speak to the identities or any other information about the patients. Schorr said the first 911 call reporting shots fired at Geary and Grants streets was at 3:38 pm, a block away from Union Square.
“Two people were hurt, we took good care of them, and they’re at the hospital,” said Schorr, noting that one victim is in critical condition and one in stable condition at San Francisco General.
Pearsall’s Rolex watch was targeted in the attempted robbery, KTVU’s Sal Castaneda reported, citing multiple sources.
The 49ers asked the public to respect Pearsall’s privacy, adding: “Our thoughts and prayers are with Ricky and the entire Pearsall family.”
“I am extremely shocked and saddened about the shooting of 49ers player Ricky Pearsall today in Union Square,” San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said in a statement. “This kind of violence has no place in our city and will never be tolerated. My heart goes out to Mr. Pearsall and his family and I wish him a speedy recovery.”
Earlier Saturday, Pearsall signed autographs at a card show at San Francisco’s Cow Palace.
So far this year in San Francisco, the police department reports 1,400 robberies, down 21% from the same period last year. Police said their investigation into Saturday’s shooting is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact its tip line (1-415-575-4444) or to text TIP411.
Pearsall, 23, is a Phoenix, Arizona native who is entering his first NFL season after playing collegiately at Florida the past two seasons and Arizona State the prior three years.
A shoulder injury has kept Pearsall from practicing the past 3 1/2 weeks, after an offseason hamstring injury delayed his entry into training camp by a week. His left shoulder has a history of partial dislocations dating back to his junior year in college, and he aggravated it in spring practices as well as on Aug. 6.
He’s done conditioning drills on the side as the 49ers prepare for their regular-season opener Sept. 9 against the New York Jets at Levi’s Stadium.
While Pearsall’s playing availability is uncertain, he figured to contribute in a support role his rookie year for a wide receiver unit led by Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, the latter of whom signed a contract extension Friday after a months-long negotiation.
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