ANTI-ASIAN HATE CRIMES IN SAN FRANCISCO BY ANH LÊ

BY ANH LÊ 

I am a Vietnamese American. 

I was brutally attacked and assaulted by 2 individuals, Jimmy Tanner, Sr. and his adolescent son, in front of a Chinese supermarket at 1118 Stockton Street in San Francisco in broad daylight on November 2, 2019.  During the attacks and assaults, their family watched with glee. 

Jimmy Tanner, Sr. and his adolescent son were arrested that evening. Jimmy Tanner was arrested for Felony Terroristic Threats, Felony Elder Abuse, and Battery. 

Earlier that day, Jimmy Tanner, Sr. and his family also attacked the owner and customers at S & M Ginseng, Inc. Chinese Herbal Store at 1000 Stockton Street, several blocks away from the Chinese supermarket. 

That evening, after the attacks and assaults perpetrated against me, Jimmy Tanner, Sr. and his family attacked an Asian woman at the intersection of Broadway and Stockton Streets in Chinatown. 

In 2021, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin and the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office gave Jimmy Tanner a plea deal, letting him plead to misdemeanor Battery with one (1) year probation, without consulting me in advance about their plea deal nor getting my consent for it, in violation of Marsy’s Law, the law enshrined in California’s State Constitution to safeguard the rights of crime victims. 

Chesa Boudin and the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office violated Marsy’s Law flagrantly and with impunity throughout the course of my case. 

They also violated Marsy’s Law in numerous other anti-Asian hate crimes that occurred in San Francisco, including the case of Rong Xin Liao, an elderly Chinese man in his 80s, and so many others. 

Many Chinese Americans and other Asian Americans were attacked in San Francisco.  Some were stabbed.  Others were shot.  Some were killed.  

Were those who perpetrated those anti-Asian hate crimes held accountable?  How many were charged and prosecuted by the San Francisco District Attorney and the  San Francisco District Attorney’s Office? 

We must remember this: Chinese Americans, Vietnamese Americans, Filipino  Americans, and other Asian Americans are entitled to all the rights accorded to us by the United States Constitution and the California State Constitution. 

We must stand strong and united. We are not invisible. We are Citizens of the United States of America. 

Copyright By Anh Lê, 2024

NOTE: Anh Lê is a long-time San Francisco resident and member of Stop Crime SF.