Nearly five full years after the unprovoked killing of an 84-year-old Thai immigrant in Anza Vista, the long-delayed trial for the murder of Vicha Ratanapakdee got underway Monday at SF Superior Court.
It has been nearly five full years since the January 28, 2021 killing of 84-year-old ‘Grandpa Vicha’ Ratanapakdee in a seemingly unprovoked sidewalk attack in the Anza Vista neighborhood. The killing was captured on surveillance video, and became a rallying cry for the Recall Chesa Boudin movement when Ratanapakdee died from his injuries several days later. But the trial has been repeatedly delayed by legal motions filed, courtroom debates over the evidence that would be allowed, and Boudin’s recall itself even delayed the trial.
But KTVU reports that opening statements in the trial began on Monday. The man facing murder charges is Daly City resident Antoine Watson, who was 19 at the time of the killing. Watson is charged with murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and inflicting injury on an elder likely to cause great bodily injury. Former DA Boudin took a lot of heat for not pressing hate crime charges on this case, though new DA Brooke Jenkins is not pressing hate crime charges either.
Still, debates over Watson’s motivations will have an outsize impact on whether Watson is indeed found guilty of murder.
"The defense is claiming this was somewhat of an impulsive act -- that it was not premeditated or planned,” legal analyst Steven Clark told KGO. “And for the prosecution, they're saying hitting an 84-year-old man is implied malice and you're guilty of murder.”
KTVU was on hand in the courtroom for Monday’s opening statements, and some evidence was presented as well. One SFPD officer testified about being called to the scene that day, and finding Ratanapakdee injured and lying in a pool of his own blood. Jurors were shown a photo of Ratanapakdee in that condition.
"It could have happened to me,” neighbor Ruby Tsang told KTVU outside the courtroom “I was there. I missed it by a few minutes. I could have been pushed down like that too.”
The trial for the murder of Vicha Ratanapakdee continues in SF Superior Court, and is expected to last until at least mid-January, with a break for the holidays.
Image: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JULY 02: People walk past a mural reading 'Justice For Vicha' on July 02, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. Vicha Ratanapakdee was an 84-year-old immigrant from Thailand who suffered a deadly assault while out for a walk in January in San Francisco. Family members believe the assault was racially motivated. Hate crimes committed against Asians climbed 107 percent in 2020 in California, according to a report from California’s attorney general. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
