By Sri Ravipati
(SAN FRANCISCO) The police chief in San Francisco on Thursday issued an apology to a man who was shot and injured by police during an auto burglary investigation last week.
Xavier Pittman, 23, was suddenly shot in the wrist when plainclothes officers from the San Francisco Police Department Central Station were arresting him in an alley called Varney Place near Third and Brannan streets on May 7.
"The shooting of Mr. Pittman quite simply should not have happened,” SFPD Chief Bill Scott said during a Thursday town hall meeting on the case.
Pittman was unarmed and already being detained when he was struck by gunfire, his attorney said Wednesday. He was taken to the hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
The officers were not wearing body cameras at the time of the incident since they were in plain clothes.
However, video evidence shows Pittman was near a car trunk when two officers approached him with guns drawn. Other suspects inside of the vehicle sped away while the trunk was open and remain at large.
After an alleged altercation, one office shot Pittman in the wrist.
Scott identified the officer who shot Pittman as Officer Zachary McAuliffe.
McAuliffe could face criminal charges for negligent discharge of a firearm if it is found he intentionally and recklessly fired his weapon.
"I’m deeply sorry that Mr. Pittman was shot during this incident and I would like to take this opportunity to apologize."
The case is under investigation criminally by the District Attorney’s Office and the SFPD's investigative bureau and police accountability units.
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