SAN FRANCISCO, CA – A San Francisco man who spent nearly three years in custody after allegedly defending himself against improper police use of force has been acquitted of all felony charges, according to a press release issued this week by the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office.
Bryan Soper was arrested in July 2022 after a neighbor reported that he had been banging on their door. According to the Public Defender, within ten seconds of the officers’ arrival, police began firing projectiles at Soper using what they described as a “modified grenade launcher,” referred to in the release as an Extended Range Impact Weapon (ERIW).
In response, Soper threw a small glass jar at the officers but missed. Police then shot him four more times with the ERIW until another officer—who had received more extensive training in de-escalation—arrived on the scene. According to the Public Defender, Soper immediately cooperated once the new officer began using de-escalation techniques.
Soper was hospitalized for injuries caused by the ERIW and later charged with false imprisonment and assault on a police officer with a deadly weapon. On May 1, a jury acquitted him of both felony charges.
“The only person who was injured here was Mr. Soper,” said Deputy Public Defender Sierra Villaran in the release. “This situation illustrates the danger of having overly armed and undertrained police officers who are willing to injure or kill a person in an instant, instead of sending in first responders with the skills and mindset to de-escalate. At trial, an SFPD sergeant testified that he would have been willing to use his firearm to shoot Mr. Soper, which jurors said was concerning to hear.”
During the trial, Villaran argued that police had used excessive force during the encounter. She also contended that Soper had neither imprisoned anyone nor prevented anyone from leaving their apartment and that he threw the jar at officers in self-defense.
Ultimately, the jury acquitted Soper of both false imprisonment and assault with a deadly weapon. He was found guilty of misdemeanor vandalism and resisting arrest and was sentenced to probation on May 8.
“Cases like Mr. Soper’s illustrate that when police inflame situations that call for de-escalation, and when prosecutors overcharge cases as felonies, it needlessly consumes huge amounts of public resources,” said Public Defender Mano Raju.
The Public Defender’s Office also noted that it is grappling with an overwhelming caseload and has begun limiting the number of new cases assigned to attorneys.
Citing CBS News, the office reported that criminal filings have increased by 31 percent over the past three years. Both the Public Defender and District Attorney’s offices attribute the rise to an increase in arrests by San Francisco police.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins has pointed to stepped-up enforcement of so-called “quality of life” offenses—such as public drug use, retail theft, and encampments—as the driver of the increased arrests.
Raju, however, emphasized the importance of diversion programs over arrests in improving public safety.
“If they get arrested, they’re coming back out again,” Raju told CBS. “It’s really important that we connect people so they can put themselves in a position where they can move to a better place in life by connecting them with the appropriate services.”
Both offices face additional strain due to recent budget cuts announced by San Francisco Mayor Daniel Laurie.
Despite those challenges, Raju praised the work of the attorneys and the jury in Soper’s case.
“I am proud of our public defenders and thankful to the jurors who carefully weighed the evidence in this case,” he said. “Public defenders continue to be on the front lines protecting our Constitutional rights, which is all the more relevant now given the attacks on due process that we are seeing at the highest levels of government.”
Soper’s defense team included Deputy Public Defender Villaran, Investigator Jesse Huber, and Paralegal Sercan Ersoy, according to the San Francisco Public Defender.
