The high school senior accused of attempting to murder San Francisco 49ers player Ricky Piersall is “very sorry” for allegedly shooting the freshman receiver, the teen's attorney said following his arraignment in juvenile court Wednesday.
Bob Dunlap, the 17-year-old's prosecutor, told reporters after the hearing that his client — who is also charged with assault with a semiautomatic firearm and attempted robbery — expressed regret over Saturday's shooting in San Francisco's Union Square.
Piersall, a first-round draft pick, was shot in the chest during a botched robbery and is expected to miss the first four games of the season.
Dunlap said after the charges were filed that the alleged shooter “deeply regrets the incident, and so does his family.” “And I can say on their behalf as well as mine that our condolences are with the Pearsall family and Mr. Pearsall.”
“There's real, genuine remorse in this case,” Dunlap said. “He's a young guy.”
Superior Court Judge Roger Chan ruled that the 17-year-old would remain in custody in San Francisco despite the boy's probation officer's recommendation that he be transferred to his home county of San Joaquin — where the teen has another pending case.
23 year old Pearsall shot The teen allegedly tried to steal his Rolex watch about 3:30pm on Saturday.
The criminal fought the robber but was hit by a bullet and during the struggle, the gun went off and another bullet hit the suspect.
San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin said police had told him of the NFL player's determination to fight the robbery, adding, “Ricky had no interest in it.” Los Angeles Times,
The teen was quickly arrested as he tried to flee on foot across a busy street.
Officers rendered aid to Pearsall and the suspect before taking them to a hospital for treatment, where the suspect was described as being in “serious but stable” condition.
The first-round draft pick was signing autographs the afternoon before he was shot.
Piersall was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list Monday.
Pearsall's mother, Erin, said in a Facebook post that he was “shot in the chest and exited through his back” and that his vital organs were damaged.
“He's very lucky,” he said.
He will be eligible to return for the team's fifth game against the Cardinals on October 6.
Piersall was selected with the 49ers’ first-round pick in June’s draft — 31st overall — and played three years at Arizona State and two at Florida during his collegiate career.
post with wires
