A homeless man accused of assaulting the San Francisco Mayor’s bodyguard has been released after a judge ruled that the altercation was initiated by the security officer.

Footage that circulated widely online captured the moment Joel Aguayo, who serves as the bodyguard for Daniel Lurie, engaged in a physical confrontation with 44-year-old Tony Phillips. The incident unfolded at a crosswalk in the city’s Tenderloin district, resulting in both individuals falling to the ground.

Initially, Phillips faced charges of assaulting a peace officer. However, Judge Sylvia Husing concluded, as reported by the New York Post, that it was the bodyguard who “violently attacked” Phillips first.

A separate video, filmed from an overhead perspective, appeared to depict the bodyguard shoving Phillips after a verbal confrontation, causing Phillips to stumble backward into a pile of garbage.

Following this, Phillips regained his footing, and the pair exchanged punches, as seen in the initial viral footage. During the scuffle, the mayor can be observed quickly walking away from the scene.

The struggle ended with both men on the ground, with Phillips seemingly gaining the upper hand over Aguayo.

Phillips’ attorney, Ivan Rodriguez, placed full blame on Mayor Lurie for the rumble.

Video surfaced allegedly showing the San Francisco mayor’s bodyguard launching a full-on brawl against a homeless man

Tony Phillips, 44, was charged with instigating an attack on Mayor Daniel Lurie on March 5

‘The mayor lured his security detail into engaging in this senseless altercation, all for political theatrics, your honor,’ Rodriguez said, according to Mission Local.

‘I don’t think that’s leadership, I think that’s performative,’ he said.

Phillips faced multiple charges, including resisting an officer and assaulting a peace officer with the potential to cause serious injury. 

The 44-year-old pleaded not guilty, and his attorney is seeking to have all charges dismissed while also questioning whether the mayor or his security team should face charges. 

‘I’m doing better out of jail. I was sweating,’ Phillips said to reporters after his release on Thursday. ‘I know what’s running in my mind. My thoughts are clear, at least.’

Mayor Lurie allegedly told his security to stop near an alleyway by Cedar Street and left the SUV to confront homeless people on the sidewalk, according to a police report obtained by the San Francisco Standard. 

Lurie allegedly asked them to move, to which Phillips asked: ‘On whose behalf do I need to move?’

‘I’ll Bruce Lee kick your a**,’ he said to Aguayo, according to the report. 

Mayor Lurie fully backed his security, saying he was concerned for Phillips’ safety and wanted the group to move away from the area. 

‘They put themselves in harm’s way every single day,’ he said, per CBS. ‘Looking out for me, looking out for my children, and looking out for my wife. 

Mayor Lurie at a press conference, he fully backed his security, saying he was concerned for Phillips’ safety and wanted the group to move away from the area

‘I want you all to know that I want to look out for them like I want to look out for every member of our SFPD.’

A second man, Abraham Simon, who allegedly intervened, was also charged with resisting, delaying, and obstructing a peace officer. 

Phillips was previously arrested in 2019 on suspicion of murder after a stabbing incident but faced no charges due to lack of evidence. 

‘The case is proceeding. I’m going to let it play out,’ Lurie said on Wednesday.

‘I’m going to continue to focus on public safety, that’s always going to be my number one priority, and I will continue to lead in that way.’

Mayor Lurie is known for his efforts to crack down on drug-fueled crime in the downtown San Francisco area.

Lurie said that his administration has managed to reduce crime by 30 percent in 2025, and by 40 percent in the financial district, which includes Union Square.

He told Bloomberg’s Odd Lots podcast that this is due to an influx of new officers on the street – marking ‘the first net increase in police and sheriffs in 10 years’.

Homeless people are seen on a sidewalk in San Francisco, California

‘Violent crime in our city, we haven’t seen these type of rates since the 1950s… what we are doing is working,’ Lurie said.

Lurie said that he ran for office ‘because of the disorder on the streets of San Francisco’ and he is still pushing for more officer recruitment.

‘My number one issue was public safety, my number two issue was the behavioral health crisis, and my number three issue is that I want to tell the world that San Francisco is open for business,’ he told Odd Lots.

‘We need police officers walking the beat along commercial corridors,’ Lurie added.

‘Our families that are taking their kids to public school and are using Muni (the city’s transport system) deserve a Muni stop that is free of people that are using drugs, it’s unacceptable.’

‘We need to get back to full staffing, and we can handle it,’ Lurie added.