A San Francisco security guard accused of shooting an alleged shoplifter inside a Walgreens was found to have acted in self-defense and will not face any charges.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said her office has declined to prosecute Michael Earl-Wayne Anthony, 33, who fired at 24-year-old Banko Brown inside the Walgreens on Market Street last Thursday.
Jenkins said that after reviewing security footage and witness statements, it was clear the security guard acted in self-defense when the suspect appeared to use force and violence to try to flee the store with merchandise.
“The evidence clearly shows that the suspect believed he was in mortal danger and acted in self-defense,” Jenkins said in a statement. “The killing of Mr. Banko Brown on April 27, 2023 was a tragedy and my heart breaks for his friends and family.”
Xavier Davenport, Brown’s friend and mentor, said it made little sense for the security guard to kill the young man for shoplifting, saying it’s something that’s done every day in the city.
“A bunch of people steal from this Walgreens every single day. I know because I used to be a loss prevention manager for Old Navy for years, for almost more than a decade,” he told CBS. “Why this black young boy had to be taken away so senseless from something that everyone in this community and everyone around San Francisco does?”
The Young Women’s Freedom Center also disputes the DA’s conclusion, identifying Brown as a transgender activist and community leader who had been struggling with homelessness since he was 12 years old.
The group gathered outside the Walgreens on Monday in protest of the shooting and to demand justice for Banko, who helped young people and transgender people also living in poverty.
“We are beyond devastated by Banko’s passing. He was a smart and funny young man who, though shy, made friends easily,” Arroyo said in a statement. “He was resilient and tenacious and loved by our whole community.
“We need immediate funding for community-based housing that responds to what young people want for themselves. Instead of terrorizing and killing youth, we need real investment into their safety.”
San Francisco Mayor London Breed’s office said it would not comment on the specifics of the case, but noted that the city had announced last year it would work to end trans homelessness.
San Francisco has since created a number of support programs, including the Our Trans Home SF Coalition.
“San Francisco strives to be a national leader in supporting trans communities and helping people on the path to housing and stability in a country where too often the basic rights and safety of trans people are under attack,” the Mayor’s Office said.
The Golden City continues to be plagued by widespread shoplifting, with the National Retail Federation’s 2022 retail security survey ranking San Francisco/Oakland as the second-most hard-hit metropolitan area by theft in 2020 and 2021, behind only Los Angeles.
