Friends describe woman shot by police as ‘mellow’

A memorial with candles and flowers marks the spot where Jessica Williams, 29, was shot by a Bayview station sergeant Thursday night. A memorial with candles and flowers marks the spot where Jessica Williams, 29, was shot by a Bayview station sergeant Thursday night. Photo: Kimberly Veklerov Photo: Kimberly Veklerov Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Friends describe woman shot by police as ‘mellow’ 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

The woman who was shot and killed by a police sergeant Thursday was considered a friend to several homeless people on the streets of San Francisco, including one who described her as “a mellow person.”

Friends said 29-year-old Jessica Williams went to Elmira Street near the Bayview district to pick up a friend Thursday, when she was fatally shot while driving what police said was a stolen car.

Williams was described by the city medical examiner’s office only as a resident of the Bay Area. Tamara Aparton, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, said Williams had been in the criminal justice system, but all her convictions were for misdemeanors. Aparton had no detailed information about the cases.

“Nobody knew her quite well,” Aparton said, adding there are no open cases against Williams. “She wasn’t like a frequent flier.”

Those who knew Williams said she was a pleasant person to deal with. The last attorney who worked with Williams said she “did everything they asked of her,” Aparton said. “There was no problem.”

Cylinka Micra, a homeless man, said Williams was a mellow person who tried to keep a low profile. However, when his wife was the victim of an attempted rape inside a tent at a homeless encampment, Williams pulled the attacker off her.

“Nobody else came to my wife’s assistance but her,” Micra said. “I have nothing but good things to say about her.”

On Thursday morning, police said Williams was found in a parked, stolen car and tried to drive away, only to crash into a parked utility vehicle. As she tried to dislodge her car from the other vehicle, police said she would not follow their orders and a sergeant shot her. There was no indication that Williams was driving the car toward officers at the time, police said, adding that no weapon was found with Williams or in the car.

The news that Williams had been shot by police outraged some people in the homeless community. Don Gordon, 45, said he didn’t believe there was a reason for police to shoot Williams, whom he called his “street niece.”

“It was hard to make her mad,” Gordon said. “But I bet she’s mad now about what they did to her.”

“It makes no sense,” Gordon continued. “Why didn’t they shoot the car to stop it from moving? And if she was trying to get away, just let her get away.”

Chronicle staff writer Wendy Lee contributed to this report.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: kveklerov