A San Francisco judge sentenced Antoine Watson to eight years in prison on Thursday, but ruled he should be released immediately on probation after having served five years in San Francisco County jail.
In late January, a jury found him guilty of assault and involuntary manslaughter, but acquitted him of murder and elder abuse.
Watson was sentenced for the 2021 killing of Vicha Ratanapakdee, an 84-year-old man from Thailand.
Surveillance video recorded Watson, who was 19 years old at the time, running toward Ratanapakdee and shoving him to the ground. The victim, who was on a morning walk in the Anza Vista neighborhood, hit his head and died in the hospital two days later.
The 2021 unprovoked attack happened at a time when hate crimes against Asian communities surged, following the COVID-19 pandemic and President Donald Trump’s remarks referring to the coronavirus as “kung flu” and the “Chinese virus.”
The attack on the elderly Asian man sparked national outrage and fueled the Stop Asian Hate movement.
Ratanapakdee’s family argued it was a hate crime, but the San Francisco district attorney never filed hate crime charges against Watson, and Watson testified at trial that he was unaware of Ratanapakdee’s age or race, since he was wearing a mask and a baseball cap at the time.
A video of the attack went viral in 2021, and rumors fed widespread misinformation about what happened.
During the trial, which started in early December 2025, prosecutors argued Watson attacked Ratanapakdee to cause the greatest possible harm and charged him with first- and second-degree murder and elder abuse. San Francisco public defenders representing Watson said he acted impulsively and without the intention to kill.
Watson was involved in a family argument and a car accident the night before the incident, which left him in a state of distress, according to his lawyers. Watson testified he thought Ratanapakdee, who was standing on a street corner, was staring at him and judging him.
The jury found Watson guilty of the lesser charges of involuntary manslaughter and assault.
Monthanus Ratanapakdee, Vicha’s daughter, was present in court with her husband, Eric Lawson, for today’s sentencing hearing.
“My father is gone, and our family is forever changed,” she said, reading a letter to the court.
“He trusted the city and loved the city, and today I ask the court to show that trust was not misplaced,” Ratanapakdee said, asking the judge to impose the maximum sentence: Nine years, in this case.
Angela Watson, Antoine’s mother, became emotional as she addressed the Ratanapakdee’s family in court, expressing her sadness for what happened and saying she’ll continue to pray for forgiveness.
“Our hearts have been heavy since that day in January,” she said.
Antoine Watson, now 25 years old, told the court he thinks about the life he took every day and takes full accountability for his actions.
“I’m sorry for the pain I caused, for the embarrassment and disappointment,” he said.
Watson said he spent over 1,880 days in jail and has had a lot of time to think about what he did. He knows this will follow him for the rest of his life, he said.
“Whenever I’m released, I will try to do my best to be there for my family and be a productive member of the community,” he added.
In imposing the sentence, Judge Linda H. Colfax considered aggravating factors: The victim was over 70 years old and suffered a bodily injury, becoming comatose.
She also took into account mitigating factors, including that Watson was 19 at the time of the attack, he experienced abuse, neglect and physical violence during childhood, and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Colfax determined at today’s hearing that Watson should be placed on probation, as a jury found he is not a danger to society, and he would benefit from ongoing programming, including therapy sessions. But if he violates the conditions of his probation, he will have to serve the remainder of his sentence in state prison.
“I’m going to be bringing you back pretty frequently,” she said. He will be required to come back to court on a regular basis and report on his participation in programs mandated by the court.
After the hearing, Monthanus Ratanapakdee and Eric Lawson told the press they were disappointed with the judge’s decision.
“I didn’t get justice for my father,” Ratanapakdee said. “Our community is very heartbroken. My mom, 73 years old, feels uncomfortable even to walk out on the street right now.”
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins also expressed her frustration with the outcome. “Justice was not served by this sentence,” she said.
Anita Nabha, Watson’s attorney, said Watson spent most of the time in jail in solitary confinement for protection due to the threats he was receiving, but he was able to participate in programming and therapy sessions.
“He expressed a desire to engage in rehabilitative services,” Nabha said.
“There are a lot of people who believe in him, and who know him for the kind of person he is, and the kind of heart that he has, and who believe that he will never repeat this kind of mistake,” she said.
“There are a lot of people who believe in him and who know him for the kind of person he is and the kind of heart that he has and who believe that he will never repeat this kind of mistake,”
Never repeat the mistake known as murder… what a world. Perhaps Anita can let him move in to her house with the level of confidence she has.
Angela Watson, Antoine’s mother, said she’ll continue to pray for forgiveness.
Forgiveness for what? How about clearly stating what sin she wants Vicha’s family to forgive? Is Angela like a Trump crony, asking forgiveness without accountability? You cannot be cleansed of sin without confessing it and owning your actions.
Angela says, “Our hearts have been heavy since that day in January.”
Why? Is Angela’s heart heavy because she feels shame that her son killed an innocent 84-year-old man in cold blood because of his race? Or because he got caught? Does she even feel shame? Or just embarrassment?
Antoine excused his crime because he was in a family fight and got in a car accident. He regrets causing “embarrassment and disappointment” and promises to “be there for his family and the community.”
Does he only regret embarrassing his own family? How does he feel about Vicha’s family? Does the community include people of the race of the man he killed just because of his race?
Judge Colfax gave Antoine a light sentence because he “experienced abuse, neglect and physical violence during childhood, and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.”
Maybe Angela and the rest of the Watson family should reflect on her role in the abuse, neglect and physical violence Antoine experienced. Maybe the Watson family could use some anger management therapy so they don’t commit other hate crimes. Or so they can learn to accept responsibility for their own actions.
Thank you Ms. Pinno for letting all of the individuals involved express their truths. Their true characters are clear to see. May they receive the justice they deserve.
“[H]er son killed an innocent 84-year-old man in cold blood because of his race”
Except that multiple people testified that they couldn’t tell what race Grandpa Visha was: he was wearing a hat and a face mask. Two people thought he was white. So, no evidence that it was because of his race. Otherwise the DA would have charged him with that.
“ I’m sorry for the pain I caused, for the embarrassment and disappointment”
Are these the words of someone who understands that they pointlessly ended another person’s life? “Embarrassment” is a word suited to discussing a missed appointment, a drunken joke, or a case of blocking someone’s driveway. That word has no place in this story.
It’s utterly beyond me to say what could be done to put this situation as right as it can be, which is not very considering the facts. This behavior reminds me of what I see at my child’s preschool, when children lose all self control and awareness and then lash out by unthinking reflex.
What can we do with a person who did something like this? I can’t begin to say. I have no idea.
I wish Vicha Ratanapakdee’s family what peace is possible for them.
I like preschool kids, but you’re right about the emotional/physical reflex. Adults can have that too, under some circumstances. Then of course there’s the Orange Shithead in the White House is 15 to 20 times as old as toddler who non-stop lashes out but does much more damage each time he does.
But Shithead’s rage is a toddler tantrum, but also well-premeditated and beyond the scale of anything pretty much anyone else can do. Stupid sycophants in the elephant party (sorry, elephants, I like you too) just clap and grin and get all excited because they know there will be more bad shit pretty soon.
SF courts continue to fail at delivering adequate consequences for violent criminals. First the elderly lady who killed a family of 4 through her reckless driving and now this guy whose unprovoked assault resulted in killing.
This bullshite will continue until the judge is held liable for the subsequent crimes this pos will inevitably commit.
Watson said in court, “Being locked up more will not help me become a better person. Prison is a dehumanizing and traumatizing environment that will not be rehabilitative.”
That would get laughed out of court anywhere else but for some reason falls on receptive ears here in SF.
Add another judge to the recall list.
Okay, Cardinal: please show us how prison is in fact not dehumanizing. Please show evidence that prison is in fact not traumatizing and is in fact rehabilitative. Cite your sources.
Brooke Jenkins is making Chesa Boudin look like a law and order zealot.