19-Year-Old Arrested And Charged With Murder In Shooting Of Mother In West Oakland
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- A 19-year-old man was charged Thursday with the murder of a mother trying to rush her children to safety from a gun battle that erupted in front of her West Oakland home Monday, but it is unclear if he fired the fatal shot, police said Thursday.
Anthony Sims has been charged with murder and various firearm counts for the killing of Chyemil Pierce, 30. Police said Pierce was shot around 4:45 p.m. Monday in front of her home in the 2900 block of Chestnut Street after a nearby argument turned violent.
Sims was also injured in the gunfight along with one other person and was arrested at the hospital after he was treated for the gunshot wound, Oakland police homicide Lt. Roland Holmgren said today. He was booked into Santa Rita Jail in Dublin and is scheduled to appear for a plea hearing on Friday morning, according to the district attorney's office.
The gunfight erupted after groups of male suspects got involved in a fight between female subjects on the street that day. Sims was one of several people who opened fire, leaving the street strewn with bullet casings from multiple different guns, Holmgren said.
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At least one of those guns was recovered, but Holmgren declined to say whether it was used to kill Pierce or whether Sims is suspected to have fired the fatal shot.
Police are actively searching for the other participants in the gunfight that afternoon and when caught they could face similar charges, Holmgren said.
Pierce, a resident of the neighborhood, had been trying to usher her young children to safety when she was shot, Holmgren said. He said the neighborhood was normally quiet, but police have had problems with activity on the corner.
Oakland police spokeswoman Johnna Watson said many people in the neighborhood came forward that day to provide information about the shooting, helping police make a quick arrest.
But some residents of the neighborhood have criticized the police response, saying Pierce's death could have been prevented had they responded to calls of the initial argument spiraling out of control, which was reported 13 minutes before the shooting.
Police are also looking into the possibility that one of two men gunned down near the corner of 10th and Willow streets in January, 29-year-old Marcus Sims, was Anthony Sims' older brother, Holmgren said.
Investigators have canvassed that neighborhood with photographs of a suspect vehicle, but have announced no arrests in the case.
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