Documentary filmmaker Kevin Epps, 48, was arrested yesterday on suspicion of homicide and felony possession of a firearm, after police responded to a reported shooting at his home in Glen Park.
According to an SFPD statement, the victim, Marcus Polk, Sr., was found at Epps' home around 1:30pm when police responded to a report of a shooting. Although paramedics were called, Polk succumbed to his injuries at the scene; Epps was transported to county jail.
CBS5 reports that Polk's son, Epps' stepson, Marcus Polk, Jr., who lives at the residence, said his father was homeless. He occasionally arrived "unannounced" at their home on the 100 block of Addison St., "angering [Polk, Jr.'s] stepfather, Epps." Yesterday, the younger Polk said his father "showed up out of the blue" before exchanging terse words with Epps.
"I think that's what did it," Polk Jr. told CBS5, "and he shot a man in the back."
CSI team arriving to assist SFPD inspectors at scene. pic.twitter.com/ziX1RNY1xQ
— Chuck Coppola (@CoppolaChuck) October 25, 2016
Epps rose to prominence in 2003 with the release of Straight Outta Hunters Point, a documentary about the impact of drugs, crime and poverty in one of San Francisco's most isolated neighborhoods. In 2014, he produced a sequel, Straight Outta Hunters Point 2, which explored education standards and environmental pollution in the community near the formal naval shipyard.
He also directed 2006's Rap Dreams, about three up-and-coming Bay Area hip-hop artists, and 2009's The Black Rock, about the history of black prisoners on Alcatraz.
In addition to working on projects with Current TV, Discovery Channel, Yahoo and Google, Epps was also an artist fellow at the de Young Museum. In online bios, he describes himself as a community activist, director, writer, producer, and startup founder.
According to a source, Epps is an expectant father with a daughter on the way, who maintains close ties to Hunters Point and regularly attends community events. In recent months, however, Epps "started hanging around" on Sixth Street in SoMa, and "didn't seem like himself," the source told Hoodline.
In a 2012 SF Weekly interview, Epps said he was striving to "be an example" for others from his neighborhood. "I'm not into any illegal or illicit activities like drug sales," he said. "I'm gonna rep my hood 'til I die, and no matter how far I go, I can't really get away from it because the connections are like family, the roots run deep."
Police have asked anyone with information about the shooting to contact their anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444 or via SMS by sending a message to TIP411 that begins with "SFPD."
