The teen who shot 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall will be tried as a juvenile and not as an adult, a court has decided, but Pearsall said he would like to meet his shooter again, and perhaps strike up a friendship.

When then-rookie 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot in Union Square in a robbery gone wrong in August of 2024, Pearsall not only made a miraculous recovery after a bullet went through his chest, he actually returned to the playing field just 50 days later to make his NFL debut. So Pearsall was certainly blessed to be able to recover in just a couple months after a 17 year-old allegedly shot him in an attempt to rob Pearsall of some merchandise he’d just bought in Union Square.

Pearsall is apparently also blessed with a shockingly forgiving demeanor. This week the Chronicle revisited how Pearsall says he’s completely forgiven the teen, and hopes the two can meet someday.

The now-recovered wide receiver made his initial remarks in January, when the Niners had just wrapped up last season’s play.

"I don't know how he grew up so, I can't judge him as a man just based off one action that he made,” Pearsall told reporters. “As violent as a crime as it was, god forbid him doing that to somebody else. I don't ever want that to happen so... just being able to forgive him at the end of the day like, I have to be able to forgive him to have that weight off my chest. At some point I do want to talk to the kid and make sure that, if I can create an impact on him in any way I think that would be really big.”

That sense of charity has, to some degree, also come across in the pending trial of that teen, who faces charges of attempted murder, assault and attempted second-degree robbery. That suspect’s name still has not been released publicly, as he was 17 years old at the time, but is now 18, as his pre-trial hearings are now underway.

And there was a significant development in those hearings Friday morning, as NBC Bay Area reports that the suspect will not be tried as an adult, and will instead be tried as a juvenile.  That’s pretty significant, because as the Chronicle points out, a guilty verdict for a minor would probably net around a seven-year sentence. A guilty verdict for an adult on those charges would be more like a forty-years-to-life sentence.  

The teen’s attorney, Public Defender Bob Dunlap, successfully argued that the teen had a traumatic and violent upbringing.

"I know he is very grateful, and emotional, and of course very relieved,” Dunlap told the Chronicle after the judge’s ruling. “Until about 20 minutes ago, he was looking at life in prison. I think he was afraid, and I’m glad he was afraid, he should have been afraid, and as I said in my comments, I hope he holds onto that."

Dunlap also showed the court a letter the teen had written to Pearsall, saying, “I apologize to you and your family. I have been praying for you and your loved ones.”

But Pearsall’s mother Erin Pearsall, who’s been attending these legal proceedings, had been hoping the kid would be tried as an adult. And obviously, that’s what DA Brooke Jenkins was pushing for too, but Jenkins said in a statement after the ruling that she accepted the decision.

"I firmly believe that in most cases, Juvenile Court is appropriate for minors. Nevertheless, when I have concerns that the Juvenile Justice system is not suitable to rehabilitate the minor before juvenile jurisdiction terminates, it is my duty to seek a transfer hearing so that a judicial officer can review all the evidence and decide if a minor is suitable for juvenile treatment,” Jenkins’s statement said, per NBC Bay Area. “I respect the court’s decision and hope that rehabilitation is successful and public safety is preserved in this case."

All of this really underscores that there are bigger things to life than football. But there is football this weekend, and the 49ers host the Arizona Cardinals at 1:25 pm PT Sunday (We’ll remind you that Pearsall is from Arizona). Pearsall will play, and there’s a sliver of a chance that the currently injured Brock Purdy might be well enough to play too.

Meanwhile, the suspect in Pearsall’s shooting has another pre-trial hearing scheduled for next Wednesday.

Related: Accused Teen Shooter of Ricky Pearsall Is 'Very Sorry,' Says Attorney [SFist]

Image: ​​GLENDALE, ARIZONA - JANUARY 5: Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall #14 of the San Francisco 49ers stands on the field prior to an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on January 5, 2025 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)