A female drifter accused of shooting a man at a downtown Sacramento bus stop has been denied bail and will return to court in November.
Audrey Jackson, 48, faces charges of attempted murder and weapons charges, all felonies, in the Sept. 22 shooting.
A woman who was panhandling that afternoon at the bus stop at Sixth and J streets pulled out a handgun and shot a 54-year-old disabled state worker after he refused her pitch for money, according to police.
The shooter took off through the stunned afternoon crowd on the busy street. Jackson was arrested a short time later aboard a local bus.
Jackson, who has no known address, was denied bail during a hearing this week and will return to court on Nov. 13.
Sacramento County Public Defender Diane Howard said she is still investigating Jackson's background and has not settled on a defense strategy. A preliminary hearing date to determine if there is enough evidence for a trial has not been set.
Jackson's sister, Maxine Jackson, who lives in Illinois, said the family was aware that Audrey Jackson was mentally ill, with signs showing in the 1970s, her sister said.
Audrey Jackson took off on a bus with a Bible in hand and a vow to find O.J. Simpson shortly after he was arrested on murder charges in 1994, her sister said.
The mother of two adult daughters, Audrey Jackson infrequently telephoned relatives over the years, her older sister said.
"I tried to get her to come here so I could get her help," her sister said.
The family got a call in 2000 from a hospital in Los Angeles, said Maxine Jackson. Audrey Jackson had been admitted there and diagnosed with schizophrenia, her sister said.
She slipped away again. Maxine Jackson feared her sister was dead.
She doesn't know why her sister was in Sacramento.
Audrey Jackson was in Reno the day before she was arrested, a shelter there confirmed.
The man who was shot at the bus stop suffered injuries in the abdomen and has endured three operations.
Adrian Perez, 52, said his brother is out of intensive care but faces a long recovery compounded by epilepsy.
He is on a feeding tube, and doctors are trying to wean him off pain medication and at the same time keep epileptic seizures at bay with other medication, said his brother.
Frank Perez, a supply clerk for the state Water Resources Board, was catching a bus home from work when he was shot. Because he also has cerebral palsy, Frank Perez walked with a cane.
Doctors hope he can begin walking again next week, Adrian Perez said. "It's going to be difficult because he needs a lot of assistance," he said.
Adrian Perez said the family has been told not to bring up the shooting since the trauma could initiate seizures.
When Frank Perez has talked about the shooting, he can't do it without tears, his brother said. "He keeps saying, 'I thought I was dead.' "
Call The Bee's M.S. Enkoji, (916) 321-1106.
