Mission Mission

It’s incredible to me in how many ways this guy has become part of our consciousness.

[file photo by me]

According to SFWeekly, late Saturday night/early Sunday morning police responded to multiple calls involving an 80-200 person bar fight near 16th and Albion. When the officers arrived on scene, within minutes, the fight was nowhere to be found. Not a trace.

[file photo by me]

Here are some possible explanations for such an occurrence:

• Ghosts – the people who were fighting were actually ghosts and they disappeared.

• Fighting Runners – people who fight as they run; everybody was running away from and/or into the fight at the same time and at the same speed such that the fight remained relatively static while moving through space.

• West Side Story Brawl – the patrons from Monk’s Kettle and the boozers from The Kilowatt exited their respective establishments at the same moment, leading to a Sharks v. Jets style face off. Just as they began snapping at each other menacingly, the coppers were called and a little kid in a newsboy’s cap ran out into the middle of the street yelling “Scatter, it’s Officer Krupke!” The two crowds quickly dispersed into cabs and alleyways.

So, one of those three things happened.

UPDATE: Somehow a plausible fourth option is being suggested in the comments: an actual fight that originated inside Gestalt, involving a man swinging a shovel at multiple people. Sounds pretty crazy. I’d get the hell out of there in a hurry too.

Mission Local has more on the story.

Officer Albie Esparza said today that 42-year-old Roland Pouncy, a San Francisco resident, was arrested Sunday on one count of possession of stolen property [the victim's ATM card]. Esparza said that the man has not been arrested in connection with Sprague’s death.

[pic by Wayne Coyne]

As an update to my post from yesterday, homicide detectives just came to my door to ask if I had any information about the homicide that apparently happened around 2:30 AM Sunday morning. A man was beaten to death and was calling for help, but nobody came to his rescue. 

If you know anything about it, the SFPD flyer has the following information:

On Sunday morning 02/19/12, sometime between 2:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. a man was robbed and then murdered in front of 125 Jullian, [sic] between 15th st, and 16th st . We ask anyone in the area of this street and the blocks surrounding it who saw or heard anything to contact S.F.P.D. YOU CAN REMAIN ANONYMOUS: TIP LINE 415-575-4444

Anyone with information regarding the circumstances surrounding this incident is asked to call Inspector John Cagney of the SFPD Homicide Detail direct at (415) 734-3181 or during business hours (415) 553-1145 (Weekdays from 9AM-5PM) you can also call after hours the SFPD Operations Center at (415) 553-1071, or the anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444

Refer to Case #: 120139612

UPDATE: Mission Local has more about the stabbing death and the people who heard the victim’s cries for help and did nothing. It’s a complicated scenario, when people become used to walking past others in various forms of distress at all hours of the day. A commenter on ML brings up the famous Kitty Genovese case, which this obviously resembles. A man is beaten and stabbed, cries out for someone to call the police, and dies a slow death on a heavily trafficked sidewalk, where his body remains for maybe nine hours.

I’ve lived in the Mission for a long time and seen a lot of people in pain. It’s often not clear if there is anything I could do to help them. I’ve intervened a few times, and I’d like to think when I specifically hear the words “help” or “police” I’d take action. But at the same time, there’s so much drama every day. Two weeks ago on Capp Street a man was yelling at the top of his lungs for someone to call the cops. When I ran outside I found two men who knew each other and were arguing over something petty. They both seemed like they were high, and neither seemed to be in any danger. I was pissed that they tried to involve me in their dispute and yelled at them and they dispersed. Nevertheless, the fact is that one man was calling for help for probably five minutes before I got out there and nobody did anything.

It’s very sad that this man wasn’t able to be saved, and the reasons why, no matter what anyone says, are very complicated.

UPDATE 2: Mission Local now reports that the cause of death is now unknown. He has been identified as Richard Sprague, 47 of San Francisco.

From a tip by reader Jewel D. I checked out the block of Julian Ave. between 16th and 15th, which is blocked off to cars at this moment. (9:45 am Sunday) The police have a small area taped off to pedestrians as well on the East side of the street near 15th. It appears to me that there is a human on the ground under a yellow tarp*, but it could be something else. The police didn’t seem to be on edge, they were just standing around talking.

Reverend Bertie Pearson told me that all the cops would say was that someone was assaulted. A few of the cops went in and out of an apartment building there, but I didn’t see anyone who looked like a civilian involved out on the street.

More as it comes in.

*Seen in the above photo between the truck and bicycle.

UPDATE: Still blocked off an hour later and the Medical Examiner is on the scene.

Quick, somebody get some turtles and a rat. I got an idea.

Check out Rinee Shah‘s new art show, appropriately opening at kitchen supply boutique Pot + Pantry. All artwork is of food items from the popular TV show Seinfeld, “Junior mints, chocolate babka, black and white cookie, and more!”

For added laughs come dressed as the Soup Nazi or Kramer or something!

Thursday, Feb 16th 7-9pm – 593 Guerrero Street near 18th.

Our ol’ pal Broke Ass Stuart recently discovered a little known supply shop for disco builders here in the neighborhood.

[link]

I bet you could get some of those live goldfish shoes. Or maybe I’m thinking of pimp style. There’s a lot of overlap. You’d probably just find a lot of little mirror pieces that you could glue onto things to make disco balls. Good use of space, guys.

And then, days later, I found an equally interesting new business venture, Elf Storage.

It makes sense when you think about it: you can fit twice the units as regular storage. Plus, outside of the Christmas season, you really only need to keep out the ones who make cookies for you.

Anybody else?

UPDATE: More good, though not local, examples in the comments!