In broad daylight, the first-round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers was shot in the chest Saturday afternoon by a teenage thief, and the star’s first words were “Am I gonna die?” Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall had been walking alone on a sidewalk near Union Square when a 17-year-old with a gun tried to steal his Rolex watch.
Once a fashionable shopping area like Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, Union Square has become seedy as Macy’s, Nordstrom and many other stores, boutiques and restaurants have closed there.