By Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross
The San Francisco Chronicle
SAN FRANCISCO — Doctors at San Francisco General Hospital are refusing to intervene in a nearly month-old hunger strike by a man accused of a double killing near Fisherman’s Wharf, on the grounds that he is of sound mind and can make his own decisions, San Francisco’s sheriff says.
This after a court-appointed psychiatrist said the murder defendant, Hong Ri Wu, was mentally incapable of standing trial.
“I never want a prisoner to die in custody,” said a bewildered Sheriff Michael Hennessey, “especially not when there is an absolute certainty that medical care could save their life.”
Wu, who sold clothing and accessories in a hole-in-the-wall store in an alley off Jefferson Street, is accused of gunning down the operators of a competing store, Qiong Han Chu and Feng Ping Ou, both 30, on Jan. 30.
In July, a court-appointed psychiatrist concluded that the 56-year-old Wu was not competent to stand trial.
Prosecutors challenged the psychiatrist’s assessment, and a second doctor was expected to give an opinion at a court hearing scheduled for today. It wasn’t immediately clear whether that hearing will still happen.
On Sept. 17, after about two weeks of refusing food at the County Jail, Wu’s condition was deemed “acute” and he was admitted to San Francisco General.
“And now the doctors at the hospital are saying that he doesn’t have any mental health issues, so they can’t intervene,” Hennessey said.
City Attorney Dennis Herrera has been contacted by Hennessey and is investigating the situation.
“I don’t think San Francisco should be in the business of standing by and letting people die on our watch,” Herrera said.
Hospital officials said they were prohibited from commenting, citing patient confidentiality laws. But we’re told San Francisco General typically involves a team of doctors and its ethics committee when it faces a crisis involving a psychiatric patient.
The public defender’s office, which is representing Wu, also declined to comment.
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