American man convicted in Thai man’s death released
A court in the United States ordered the release on probation of an African-American man convicted over the death of the 84 year old Thai man Vicha Ratanaphakdee in San Francisco in 2021. The remaining three years of his eight-year sentence would be suspended.
The victim, Vicha, was walking for exercise near his home in San Francisco, California, on the morning of January 28, 2021. He was described as walking slowly as usual due to poor eyesight.
According to the case details, a man approached Vicha and struck him, causing him to fall to the ground. Vicha suffered serious injuries and later died in the hospital.
CCTV footage from a neighbour captured the incident. The footage showed no conversation between the two before the attack, with the suspect walking away afterwards.
The suspect was later identified as Antoine Watson, who was 19 at the time. Further CCTV review showed Watson leaving the area in a car driven by his girlfriend, 20 year old Maylasia Goo.
Both were arrested over allegations of conspiring to commit the fatal attack, but Goo denied involvement, saying she turned her face away and did not see what Watson had done. Goo was later released, while court proceedings continued against Watson.
Vicha’s family said they believed racism was a factor, stating the incident occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic when Asian people were viewed as the origin of the disease.
Watson denied that Asian hate was the motive, saying he did not know Vicha was Asian. He claimed he pushed Vicha with his hands and did not intend to kill him. Watson also told the court he acted violently due to stress and poor mental health, saying he had been arrested for running a red light a few hours before the incident.
After five years of proceedings, the court delivered its verdict on March 26, ruling that Watson committed an unintentional murder and sentencing him to eight years in prison.
However, the court ordered his immediate release, citing the five years he had already spent in custody during the proceedings. The court said the remaining three years of the sentence would be suspended and Watson would be placed on probation.
As part of the probation terms, Watson was ordered to undergo treatment for PTSD symptoms, which the court said stemmed from abuse during his childhood. He was also instructed to seek employment and pay compensation to Vicha’s family of US$19,000, or about 620,000 baht.
Watson, now 25 years old, is living with his mother in Hayward, California. The case continues to prompt public debate over whether the punishment is proportionate to the loss suffered by Vicha’s family.
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