A judge ruled Friday that the teenager charged with shooting San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall during an attempted robbery in August 2024 will be tried as a juvenile rather than as an adult, per Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle.
The suspect was 17 years old at the time of the shooting but is now 18 years old, per the Associated Press. He is being charged with attempted murder, assault and attempted second-degree robbery.
An adult who is tried and found guilty of those charges could be sentenced to 50 years to life in prison, Ostler reported. A juvenile found guilty of the same charges is “likely” to receive up to five years in prison, per Ostler.
The decision to try the suspect as a juvenile was made by Judge Denise de Bellefeuille of Santa Barbara, according to Ostler.
Ostler reported that the suspect was presented by his public defender as a “victim of trauma from childhood abuse, neglect and violence” who could be rehabilitated.
The district attorney’s office meanwhile pushed for the suspect to be tried in adult court because his actions could have killed Pearsall, according to the AP.
The attempted robbery and shooting took place outside luxury stores near Geary Street and Grant Avenue in San Francisco around 3:30 p.m. local time on Aug. 31, 2024, according to the San Francisco police.
Police told the San Francisco Chronicle‘s Michael Cabanatuan, Demian Bulwa and Sam Whiting Pearsall had been targeted by the teenager “for his expensive watch.”
Pearsall “was shot through the chest at close range” during a struggle with the teenager, Cabanatuan, Bulwa and Whiting reported. The teenager was shot in the arm, and both were transported to a hospital.
The 49ers announced the following day that Pearsall had been released from the hospital. He ultimately missed the first six games of his rookie season before making his NFL debut on Oct. 20, 2024.
The wide receiver told KNBR last January he would like to eventually talk with the teenager, and that he has “to be able to forgive him to have that weight off my chest.”
Pearsall has so far recorded 164 total receiving yards on eight catches during the 49ers’ 2-0 start to his sophomore NFL season.
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