San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins is not pursuing charges against a man arrested in connection with the rolling gun battle between two cars that injured six people and spanned more than a mile along the Embarcadero on Father’s Day.
While Jenkins can still charge Lee Alexander Haywood, 33, in the future, her office announced Friday that she is declining to prosecute him at the moment, citing the need for further investigation into the June 18 shooting.
“This is a complex investigation involving multiple crime scene locations, many witnesses as well as significant evidence that must be analyzed,” Jenkins said in a statement. “This type of investigation takes time to complete, and we are working with SFPD to ensure that they gather all relevant evidence that we need to evaluate this case and make appropriate charging decisions.”
The shooting began shortly after 7 p.m. Sunday near Beach and Stockton streets when people riding in a black SUV and a white sedan began shooting at one another as the cars sped toward Pier 39, according to police.
The vehicles then headed south along the Embarcadero and struck two young girls who were crossing the street on bicycles near Kearny Street, sending one of them to the hospital.
Three other people were also injured by shattered glass, police said.
Haywood was taken into custody alongside a woman when police found them both suffering from gunshot wounds after the SUV crashed on Embarcadero near Howard Street, according to police.
They were both taken to the hospital, where Haywood was booked by police on suspicion of various gun charges including recklessly discharging a firearm.
The white sedan fled the scene.
Haywood was also booked on a warrant out of Contra Costa County stemming from an October 2018 incident in which he allegedly had cocaine and a loaded handgun that was concealed and unregistered.
San Francisco sheriff’s records show he was still in custody as of Friday morning.
At a City Hall hearing on Wednesday, Police Chief Bill Scott said the shooting could have turned deadly.
“Luckily, nobody was killed in this incident, because it was horrific,” Scott told the Police Commission. “A lot of people out Pier 39, as we all know, is a very popular destination for both our city residents and people who visit our city. So we were very fortunate that this was not worse than what it could have been.”