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Two convicted of 'cold-blooded' drug murder of elderly gay man

After a seven-year delay and a mistrial, the killers of a gay photographer in San Francisco's Twin Peaks neighborhood have been convicted of first-degree murder and now await sentencing in December.

Fantasy Decuir and Lamonte Mims, both 27, were convicted in the robbery and death of Edward French, a 71-year-old photographer who had gone to the scenic hilltop overlook to take sunrise photos.

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Decuir was found guilty of first-degree murder with special circumstances, second-degree robbery and intentional use of a firearm causing death, according to a statement from San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins. Mims was found guilty of first-degree murder with special circumstances and intentional use of a firearm.

“The victim was ripped from the lives of his friends and family by this reckless, on-camera murder,” said Assistant District Attorney Aaron Laycook.

According to evidence and witness statements presented in court, French drove to Twin Peaks early on the morning of July 16, 2017 to take photos with his new Canon Mark III camera. Video surveillance showed that Decuir and Mims approached French and robbed him at gunpoint.

As Mims struggled to pull the camera away from French, Decuir shot him through the heart and right lung. As he lay bleeding on the ground, Mims grabbed French's bag and kicked him, prosecutors said.

“The jury’s verdict holds Ms. Decuir and Mr. Mims responsible for the cold-blooded murder of an elder in our community who was doing what he loved to do on the morning of his murder in 2017,” Jenkins said after the sentencing.

In 2023, a mistrial was declared after Decuir and Mims appeared for the first time before a jury that was unable to reach a unanimous verdict.

At that trial, the defense claimed that Decuir was unconscious when she shot French because of “extreme pain” from sickle cell anemia and the “large amounts of opiates prescribed and administered to her for relief,” defense attorneys said The Bay Area Reporter.

The killers' defense team also argued that Decuir had a low IQ and “a lack of adaptability.”

Just hours after the murder, Decuir and Mims attempted to sell French's camera on downtown Market Street, a location within his line of sight from where he was killed on Twin Peaks.

Twelve days later, Decuir and Mims robbed two tourists at gunpoint and stole their camera and credit cards. This robbery led to the pair being feared for French's murder.

At the end of the first trial last year, Brian Higginbotham paid tribute to his late partner.

“Ed was great. He was born and raised here in San Francisco. He was “Mr. San Francisco, the nicest person. He loved the city, he took photos for a living showing how beautiful San Francisco is and made commercials, and to be up there on that Sunday morning for that to happen and for it to have no consequences so far – I could almost start saying, “I'm crying here,” Higginbotham said. “We will get justice.”

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