The Bayview man shot and killed yesterday afternoon by San Francisco police officers, 41-year-old Ryant Bluford of San Francisco, was known as “Peanut” to friends and family. They recalled him as a loving father, brother, cousin and friend — while acknowledging the violent crime in his past.
Neighbors interviewed Wednesday night and Thursday morning said Bluford struggled with mental illness and had a disdain for the police, the result of more than a decade spent in prison for various serious offenses.
Bluford was convicted in the 2006 gang rape of a 16-year-old girl in San Francisco, and spent more than a decade in prison as a result. He was again charged, in 2022, for domestic violence and sexual assault.
Neighbors described the shooting as a tragedy.
“He had four kids and a wife, two were twins. He did the best he could,” said a friend of Bluford’s, who gave his name as Tyke, saying Bluford’s mental health worsened after time in prison. “He was in the pen for 12 years; he had some mental issues from that.”
Bluford was captured on video Wednesday, July 26, pacing in the intersection of Catalina Street and Fairfax Avenue in Bayview as a trio of police officers aimed their pistols at him from behind an SUV. In the video, he shouts and waves his arms, perhaps 10 or 15 yards away from the officers. Bystanders shout, “Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot him!” as the officers yell, “Put your hands up!”
Bluford then aims what appears to be a pistol at the officers, and is shot down in a hail of bullets. Police have not yet officially confirmed whether a weapon was recovered from the scene, but a police source tells Mission Local that Bluford did have a real firearm, and it was recovered. Bluford’s friends and family also said he had a gun, and fired once at the officers; they pointed on Thursday to a chalk circle on the street, where they said the casing from Bluford’s bullet had landed.
Police have not confirmed whether Bluford fired a shot.
At least eight shots rang out in total, and area residents said their homes were struck by gunfire. An employee at Hope SF Wellness Center, a community space just steps away from where Bluford was shot, reported that their car was struck by a bullet — then taken by the police for evidence.
The San Francisco Police Department said plainclothes officers with the Community Violence Reduction Team, formerly the Gang Task Force, were in Bayview on Wednesday, attempting to arrest a man around 2:30 p.m.
It is unclear how Bluford became a target, but friends and family said Bluford tried to interfere in the police arrest. “There were kids fighting, the cops came to detain them and he was standing up for [the kids],” explained Mika, a family friend. Another said Bluford yelled at officers while they were attempting their arrest.
It is unclear if any of the officers on the scene had been through Crisis Intervention Training.
In a statement, SFPD said that Bluford “approached and engaged” the officers making an arrest. Two uniformed officers then arrived on scene and noticed Bluford with “what appeared to be a firearm.” Officers then called for backup — a “10-25” — according to a police source. Immediately before the shooting, at least six squad cars were seen racing down Mission Street to the scene.
Bluford was transported to San Francisco General Hospital and died there, according to police.
Bullet holes on a resident’s screen, at Fairfax and Catalina. Photo by Gilare Zada. July 27, 2023. 
Close up of bullet hole, with an evidence tag, on a resident’s screen at Fairfax and Catalina. Photo by Gilare Zada. July 27, 2023. 
Close up of chalk circles in the spot where Ryant Bluford was shot, at Fairfax and Catalina. Photo by Griffin Jones. July 26, 2023.
Candles lit, chalk circles drawn
At the Bayview intersection, Bluford’s family lit candles. They described Peanut as a man who had been through the wringer, and criminal records show past convictions for rape and other violent crimes.
He had a fearful association with police, neighbors said, one borne from a lifetime of negative experiences dealing with law enforcement: According to criminal records, Bluford was charged with kidnapping, rape, assault with a deadly weapon, and various other crimes in 2006; he was incarcerated in 2008, according to criminal records, and friends and family said he spent more than a decade in prison.
Then in 2022, he was charged again, with domestic violence, sexual assault, and criminal threats. It was not immediately clear if he was convicted and imprisoned for these alleged crimes.
“You have to think about the kind of trauma someone has experienced with the police,” said one neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous. “He looked done, driven to suicide by cop.”
“He had a lot of mental health issues,” said another anonymous neighbor. “He had a family. He loved his kids. A lot of people around here have mental issues.”
That neighbor, for her part, wished there had been a non-violent response initially to de-escalate the situation — or at least a less-lethal one.
“It’s like there’s no logic. They don’t ask what’s going on, they don’t even think to just ask. They need more training with people with mental health issues,” she said. “When it comes to African Americans, they use force and think later. Even if they felt he was a threat, they could have Tased him or shot him in the leg.”
San Francisco police, however, do not carry Tasers. And are not trained to shoot-to-wound.
Since 2000, 19 of the 61 people shot and killed by SFPD were Black — 31 percent; 18 of them were Black men. That rate is disproportionate to the city’s population: Black people make up about five percent of San Francisco.
% city population vs % fatally shot
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Black
Latinx
White
Asian
Other
Race and ethnicity
White
Black
Latinx
Asian
Other
20
40
5
10
15
25
30
35
0
% city population vs % fatally shot
Chart by Will Jarrett. Up-to-date as of July 27, 2023.
On Wednesday evening, eight chalk circles were drawn on Fairfax Avenue, presumably the sites of recovered shell casings. Bullets struck at least one unit nearby, leaving holes in an exterior screen, reportedly missing the home’s occupant by a few inches.
Two other circles were drawn on the ground on Catalina Street, possibly the sites of Bluford’s body and gun.
About a dozen police officers and investigators with the District Attorney’s Office canvassed the scene Thursday morning, attempting to interview witnesses. Darby Williams, the head of the DA’s Independent Investigative Bureau, which probes police shootings, was on scene leading the investigation.
The San Francisco Police Department, as required by city law, will hold a community town hall within 10 days to present its report of the police shooting, including body-camera footage and other evidence.
Not sure how you have a non violent, de-escalating, less lethal incident when a person interjects themselves into an ongoing arrest, is armed and brandishing a firearm. If he is an ex convict and had mental health issues, how did he have a gun in his possession? Where was his loving family to stop this incident from occurring. Sorry for the loss of life but glad others ( as you see in the video persons were standing by and filming) did not get hurt or killed. Those filming maybe should have it their phones down to help deescalate or get his family aware of what was happening.
If he had such serious mental health issues from his time in prison (on a gang rape charge, btw) that he was willing to shoot cops, then he shouldn’t have been on the streets. He should have been in a mental hospital or at least getting some sort of treatment.
Demonizing police has consequences. There have been more cops killed in the line of duty in the past few years and that makes them more reactive.The man had convictions for gang rape and forced oral copulation with a minor. Sure there are bad cops but most aren’t. The belligerent attitude of the Woman making the video was not helpful .
He should’ve got life for the gang rape and should still be alive today… in prison.
This man was a menace to society and finally his actions caught up with him. Aiming your gun at a cop is asking for it. Just cuz your a father doesnt make lesser of a monster. Bye Felicia
“Since 2000, 19 of the 61 people shot and killed by SFPD were Black — 31 percent; 18 of them were Black men. That rate is disproportionate to the city’s population: Black people make up about five percent of San Francisco.”
This is SUCH an intellectually dishonest statement.
Know what *another* “disproportionate” number is? Of the 60 people in SF killed by cops since 2000, 57 have been male, and just 3 female, despite men being 51.5% of the population.
This disparity can *only* be due to institutional reverse-sexism among the male-dominated law enforcement community, right?
Yeah…NO. We all know that it is due to the way that men tend to act with violence, and often react to authority figures. It’s not even controversial to point that out. But change the breakdown from deaths by *sex* to deaths by *ethnicity*, and suddenly it MUST be due to racism?! Nonsense.
> Bluford was convicted in the 2006 gang rape of a 16-year-old girl in San Francisco, and spent more than a decade in prison as a result. He was again charged, in 2022, for domestic violence and sexual assault.
You sneak this in here casually like it’s some kind of minor crime for which he had to endure harsh and unjust sentence which caused him to distrust the police. He has victims who he scarred for a lifetime.
If you wish to paint a picture of a victim of police violence, pick someone who is easier for the public to root behind. This guy isn’t it.
If this person was known to have all these mental issues, why didn’t his family or the community try and assist him in addressing these problems? Why didn’t any family or friends try and stop him from carrying a gun in the first place? People need to take responsibility instead of playing the blame game and pointing fingers after the fact.
The video footage makes it abundantly clear he did everything in his power to get shot. Interfering with an arrest, agitating, refusing to follow commands, refusing to follow commands when cops were aiming weapons at him, and then pointing a gun at cops. What is disheartening is the absolute dregs of the neighborhood came out screaming and roaring that this “gentleman” (who gangraped a teenage girl) should come to such an end. Serves him right
Nothing says “he feared police” than belligerently interfering with their official duties by pointing an illegal firearm at them.
“That rate is disproportionate to the city’s population”… well, the Asian rate is also disproportionately *low* compared to the city’s population. Even lower than the white rate.
I wonder why? Is it because the supposedly white supremacist cops actually hate whites more than Asians?
Yes, a kind family man just peacefully living his life, excercising his free-speech rights by pointing a gun at cops. What a hero!
People v. Timmons, No. A121153, (Cal. Ct. App. Feb. 11, 2010) (“Bluford, wearing a black and white T shirt, was third, warning: “If you’re cool, we won’t shoot you. Do what you’re supposed to do, we will let you live, we won’t kill you.” He then forced her to orally copulate him, then had vaginal and anal sex with her.”)
I wanted to upvote MatthewB’s comment asking why Mission Local doesn’t report on crimes against Asians – including crime that happened in the Mission, and HMS’s comment that he should have been in an mental institution, or at least get help. Did his friends and family try to get him help if they are aware of his condition? The upvote button didn’t work for my devices.
More black men get shot by police because they engage in more violent crime and have contact with police in that context. That is factual and supported by data. It is not racist to point that out. Also, there is no epidemic of police shooting unarmed black men in this country. This man was armed and was a threat to the police and people around him. Another fact support by data is that black officers are more likely than white officers to shoot black men. All of this way studied using FBI crime data by the Univ. of Michigan and Univ. of Maryland.
I’m curious why mission local does not cover the crimes against Asians?
An 88 year old woman was violently pushed by a young black male. Unprovoked
A woman was “accidentally” pushed in the bayview
And on. And on.
People are literally dying to get into this country. Once here, immigrants work to the bone to make their way. Yet, people here squander the opportunity. So tired of hearing about how unfair the past was.
Yes, generational trauma exists. Most of human kind have had some crappy background. But goodness gracious, enough!
This whole article and comment section makes me want to vomit. So disheartening that Ryant’s family has to wade through such shit. This is what generational trauma looks like.
What about the trauma *he* caused to his victims? That’s irrelevant, huh?
My sympathy for Ryant’s family doesn’t preclude sympathy for others. That’s a common, but bizarre concept.
Why, exactly, am I supposed to have sympathy for a gang rapist of a minor, as well as someone that committed sexual assault and domestic violence less than a year ago?
Yes the well documented cycle of gang rape, a product of generational trauma… What a cop out! Anything to avoid accepting even the slightest responsibility.