San Francisco police no longer believe
the man arrested Saturday at a gay pride event after gunfire left one
man dead is responsible for the murder, the San Jose Mercury News
reported.
Ed Perkins, 20, was identified Tuesday
by police as the man arrested in connection with the killing of
19-year-old Stephen A. Powell Jr. of San Francisco. Powell was among
the three people hit by gunfire at about 11:30PM in the city's
predominantly-gay Castro district as the Pink Saturday street party
kicked off the city's 40th annual gay pride weekend.
Police say Perkins will face charges of
carrying a concealed weapon but the murder charge has been dropped.
Investigators say none of the bullets
fired at the scene came from Perkins' .357-caliber revolver.
Also injured in the gunfire were two
other people, a 19-year-old woman and a 29-year-old man, both of whom
are expected to make a full recovery.
Officials say their investigation will
continue.
“The San Francisco Police Department
is working to apprehend the individual who marred one of our most
proud celebrations by bringing deadly mayhem to our streets,”
Kamala Harris, the city's district attorney, said in a statement.