San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, seen in a file photo, announced murder charges against a man suspected in a fatal hit-and-run this week in the South of Market neighborhood.
Lea Suzuki/S.F. Chronicle
San Francisco prosecutors on Thursday announced they filed murder charges against a man suspected of fatally striking a pedestrian in the South of Market neighborhood this week.
Valentino Cash Amil, a 30-year-old San Francisco resident, was charged with homicide, leaving the scene of an accident and an enhancement for the use of a deadly weapon, the vehicle, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced during a news conference.
Amil allegedly fled in his sedan after striking Dannielle Spillman with the vehicle at the corner of Mission Street and South Van Ness Boulevard around 3:23 p.m. Monday, police said. Spillman, a 74-year-old San Francisco resident, died at the scene, police said.
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Police found Amil’s vehicle on a freeway using a drone and arrested him shortly after near Potrero Avenue and 18th Street, authorities said.
“I want to send my condolences to the friends and family of the victim in this case, who tragically died for absolutely no reason,” Jenkins said, adding that her office was working to support the victim’s loved ones and hold Amil accountable.
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Amil’s arraignment was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Prosecutors will request that he be detained without bail because “we believe that he presents a significant safety risk,” Jenkins said.
Seth Morris, Amil’s attorney, said Wednesday that Amil acted in self defense after the victim, who he said appeared to be homeless and intoxicated, allegedly tried to pull Amil’s car doors, climbed onto the hood and doused the vehicle with a liquid that Amil feared could be gasoline.
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Amil’s wife and two young children, a 4-month-old and an 11-year-old, were in the car when the incident occurred, Morris said. The family was on their way to Disneyland, he added.
“At that moment, he believed his family was about to be violently attacked,” Morris said. “He acted out of instinct and fear, trying to remove his children from what he perceived to be an immediate and life-threatening situation.”
Morris did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the charges announced Thursday.
At the news conference, Jenkins said the incident was captured on video, leading prosecutors to believe the victim was not a significant threat that would have warranted the use of self defense by Amil. The Chronicle could not immediately verify details about the video.
Jenkins said the video shows Spillman walking around Amil’s vehicle, which prosecutors said was at a stop and blocking the sidewalk, and briefly exchanging words with Amil.
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Spillman gets in front of the car and Amil allegedly accelerates, striking Spillmen, who then ends up on the hood before falling onto the roadway, Jenkins said.
The incident remains under investigation, officials said.