
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins declined to file charges in the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Banko Brown near a downtown Walgreens. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin this week said he plans to formally request District Attorney Brooke Jenkins reconsider her decision not to charge the Walgreens security guard accused of fatally shooting a 24-year-old outside the store.
Why it matters: Jenkins' decision not to charge Michael Earl-Wayne Anthony, who was arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting Banko Brown, has prompted outcry about the treatment of Black and transgender people in the city.
State of play: Brown, who was both Black and transgender, died at a local hospital Thursday night after officers responded to reports of a shooting in the 800 block of Market Street and found Brown suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. An initial investigation found that a theft had occurred, police said.
- On Monday, Jenkins announced she would not pursue murder charges against Anthony "because of credible evidence of reasonable self-defense."
- During this week's Board of Supervisors meeting, Peskin said he would ask his fellow supervisors to urge Jenkins to reexamine her decision, saying, "This appears to be a manslaughter case to this non-attorney," the San Francisco Standard reports.
- Peskin's comments came after about two hours of public comment, where dozens of people spoke out against Jenkins' decision and the harsh realities facing LGBTQ+ people of color.
What they're saying: "This is not an anomaly," Steven Torres, who serves on the city's entertainment commission, said at the meeting.
- He added that queer and transgender people of color are "routinely harassed and targeted by hired security."
The other side: Jenkins said she evaluated the security footage and witness statements to see if there was a credible claim of self-defense.
- "We ultimately did not believe that we could prove beyond a reasonable doubt here that the security guard had committed murder or any other crime," she said during an interview with KPIX-5.
- In a separate statement, Jenkins said it was clear Anthony "believed he was in mortal danger and acted in self-defense."
What to watch: Whether footage from the shooting is publicly released, and whether Jenkins will reconsider her decision.
- Jenkins did not respond to Axios' request for comment on Peskin's statements.

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