Woman Convicted for Attacking Tenderloin Case Managers During Free Coffee Service

The two case managers were serving free coffee to residents and guests of a single-room occupancy building in the Tenderloin on December 2, 2025, when Kalann Johnson walked in uninvited. She didn't live there. When the workers asked what unit she was visiting, the exchange that followed left one woman unable to return to work and still wearing a neck brace months later.

A San Francisco jury convicted Johnson, 35, on two counts of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury and two counts of battery with serious bodily injury. Jurors also found true an allegation that she personally inflicted great bodily injury on both victims. Johnson remains in custody, and sentencing will be determined at a later court date.

According to trial testimony and evidence, Johnson verbally berated the case managers after they questioned her presence in the building, then punched the first worker in the face. That worker still wears a neck brace and has not been able to return to work. When her colleague stepped in to defend her, Johnson grabbed the second worker by the hair and used it as leverage to punch her multiple times in the face, ripping out a chunk of hair.

"These amazing case workers just wanted to serve their community by providing free coffee," said Assistant District Attorney Rachel Schneider, who prosecuted the case with paralegals Daniel La and Josh Nickchen. "No one should experience violence this brutal and unprovoked at their work, a place they are supposed to be safe and protected." Victim Advocate Jonathan Baez worked closely with both women throughout the pendency of the case.

Prosecutors were able to develop a strong case against Johnson based on the work of officers from the San Francisco Police Department's Tenderloin Station. District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said the jury's verdict "holds Ms. Johnson accountable for this violent attack on two women who were working to bring a little joy to building residents and their guests," adding: "Although nothing can undo the trauma the victims and others experienced in the building as a result of this incident, I hope that this verdict brings them some comfort as they work to heal.