Teen Allegedly Shot 49ers Rookie Ricky Pearsall for ‘Expensive Watch’: Reports Citing Police

Mar. 15, 2025

Ricky Pearsall.Photo:Brooke Sutton/Getty

Brooke Sutton/Getty

San Francisco 49ers rookie Ricky Pearsall had attended an autograph signing and was shopping for luggage when a 17-year-old who allegedly wanted his Rolex held him up, per theSan Francisco Chronicle.

Both the wide receiver and the teen were injured in the Union Square incident around 3:30 p.m. local time on Aug. 31, according to theSan Francisco Police Department.

Pearsall and the teen, who is charged as a minor, were treated at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.

Pearsall – who was struck on the right side of his chest, the bullet exiting his back while missing all vital organs and nerves – is expected to recover and return to the field.

Police respond to the scene where Ricky Pearsall was shot.Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty

Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty

“It’s nothing short of miraculous that he came out of this as good as he did,” 49ers General Manager John Lynch said during a Sept. 3press conference, noting that the rookie has been added to the so-called non-football injury list and will not be playing for “four weeks, at least.”

The 17-year-old, who is charged with attempted murder, assault with a semiautomatic firearm and attempted second-degree robbery, is due in juvenile court for arraignment Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 1:30 p.m. PST, according to the District Attorney’s office.

Juvenile cases are largely shut to the public –online filingsfor the case were not publicly available Wednesday – and it was not immediately clear if the teen had retained a lawyer.

An evidence marker from the Aug. 31 shooting of Ricky Pearsall.Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty

Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty

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“He tried to rob me!” she recalls Pearsall telling her.

As the blood gushed from his chest, he asked her if he was going to die.

“You’re strong,” she said repeatedly, pressing his shirt and her own baseball cap over the wound to quell the bleeding. “Just focus on the breathing.”

Evidence markers from the Aug. 31 shooting of Ricky Pearsall.Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty

Pearsall returned to the team facility Monday, Sept. 2, Kristin Wojcik, the 49ers communication manager, confirmed to PEOPLE.

“He’s doing remarkably well,” Lynch said at the press conference, calling the incident “unchartered territory.”

Lynch, who visited Pearsall at the hospital, said that some of Pearsall’s “earliest concerns” regarded “when he could play.”

“I promise you, I’m not injury prone,” he said Pearsall – the 31st overall draft pick in April – tried to reassure him, to which the general manager noted how he reminded the rookie that being shot is “out of your control.”

Ricky Pearsall was the 49ers first round draft pick in April.AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vasquez

AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vasquez

Lynch, who said the team has emphasized “being safe and being aware” on the streets of San Francisco, said Pearsall had been shopping for luggage for upcoming away games when he was held up at gunpoint near his car.

“We should be able to do that and not be concerned," the general manager said regarding individuals feeling safe in public.

The teen “spotted him for his expensive watch” Sgt. Frank Harrell (who is married to the first-responder) toldThe Chronicle.

Police Chief Bill Scott (left), Mayor London Breed and District Attorney Brooke Jenkins on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024.Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP

Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP

District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said in a statement shared with PEOPLE that she “will seek to have the minor held in custody” due to “the public safety risk posed.”

Her office further noted that she has not yet decided if she will request a fitness hearing to move the case to adult court.

“This case will be tried like all other cases, in the courtroom, not in the press,” Jenkins said. “We will follow the facts, evidence and the law and do our jobs to seek justice.”

source: people.com