Teenager is charged over shooting of NFL star Ricky Pearsall in San Francisco

A 17-year-old has been charged following the attempted murder and robbery of San Francisco 49ers player Ricky Pearsall. 

The teenager has been charged with attempted murder, assault with a semi-automatic firearm and attempted second-degree robbery.

Pearsall, 23, was hit in the chest and hospitalized overnight after the shooting in central San Francisco on Saturday. He was released from the hospital Sunday and was already back at the team facility Monday.

Pearsall was walking alone carrying shopping bags to his car shortly after 3:30 p.m. Saturday when a juvenile suspect attempted to rob him with a gun in the Union Square area, officials said.

Officers in the area responded immediately and provided emergency medical aid and arrested the suspect. Pearsall was shown on video from a witness with a large chest wound as he was helped into an ambulance.

A 17-year-old has been charged following the attempted murder and robbery of Ricky Pearsall 

Pearsall, 23, was hit in the chest and hospitalized overnight after the shooting in San Francisco

Police immediately apprehended the 17-year-old suspect, who was not wearing shoes after losing them at the scene of the attack. 

The teenager is expected to appear in court on Wednesday and prosecutors will seek to keep them in custody, said San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins.

Jenkins added she would retain the option to ask the judge to move the case to an adult court if it was deemed the juvenile system was 'not equipped' to rehabilitate the accused.

The 49ers placed the wide receiver on the reserve/non-football injury list on Monday but that hasn't stopped him from returning to work. 

The rookie will miss at least four games of his debut NFL season due to the injuries he suffered after talking a bullet to the chest but Pearsall was fit enough to report to San Francisco's team facilities Monday.

The wideout was in the team's weight room, according to KNBR's Tim Ryan who talked to Pearsall about the experience. 

'I talked to him yesterday, he was actually in the weight room,' Ryan said. 'Thank God it's not worse than it was... I already know this, his street cred has gone up tremendously around here.' 

On Monday, a San Francisco police sergeant revealed Pearsall's harrowing first words after he was shot.

Via NBC Bay Area, Sgt. Joelle Harrell said: 'He looks at me and he's like, "Am I gonna die?" I'm just like, "No."

'I take off my hat because I wanted to make eye contact with him. I wanted him to hear me. I said to him, "Listen, look at me. I know you don't know me, but I want you to trust me, it's not your time."'

Harrell was unaware that Pearsall was an NFL player until she began treating the wound, before she tried to reassure him by saying: 'Remember you're gonna be ok. You're strong, be strong like you are on the field.'

'And he listened,' she added, via San Francisco Chronicle. 'He calmed down, and that’s what I wanted him to do.'

Cops say the 17-year-old suspect took a bullet from his gun during his struggle with Pearsall 

San Francisco has been plagued by shootings for years, although Breed boasted in April that violent crime was down 14 percent compared with the same time frame in 2023. Specifically, gun violence was down 38 percent over the first quarter of 2024, according to City Hall.

Pearsall was drafted in the first round in April by the 49ers with the 31st overall pick but has been slowed by injuries since joining the team.

He missed time during training camp because of hamstring and shoulder issues before returning to practice last week with a noncontact blue jersey while his shoulder heals.

Pearsall began his college career at Arizona State and transferred to Florida for his final two seasons. He had 65 catches for 965 yards and four touchdowns last season for the Gators and finished his college career with 159 catches for 2,420 yards and 14 TDs.