By Laura Waxmann
New details have emerged in the case of the Sacred Heart Preparatory School student who was stabbed to death in the Mission District in September, leaving his family with more unanswered questions.
A video released Dec. 8 by San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi clearly shows Rashawn Williams, 14, being confronted by two suspects Sept. 2 outside of Rubin’s Market at 26th and Folsom streets. He had been playing at the nearby Garfield Park before going to the convenience store to buy candy with his younger brother.
A day after the murder, the San Francisco Police Department detained a 14-year-old boy who attended Horace Mann Middle School with Williams, and allegedly bullied him through social media shortly before his death. The suspect has been in custody at juvenile hall for the past three months and is awaiting the next court hearing in January.
However, the footage released to the public may exonerate him, as it shows that the other individual caught on tape was the one responsible for delivering the fatal blow to Williams.
According to Adachi, the video has been in the District Attorney’s possession for months, and the second individual’s identity is known to the police, though he has not been arrested. Police did not reveal that they were looking for a second individual involved in Williams’ murder prior to the release of the footage, and it is unclear why no further arrests have been made.
Williams’ grief-stricken family, who have rallied vehemently to have the accused boy tried as an adult, declined to comment on the latest developments in the case.