In the early morning hours of Sunday, September 15, 2024, the life of Rayjon Ray, a 24-year-old Black man from Des Moines, Iowa, was cut short by gunfire. An after-hours gathering was underway in the parking lot of a convenience store in the city's River Bend neighborhood when multiple arguments broke out among the crowd.
The situation escalated when one of the arguments turned into a physical fight.
According to police, Rayjon intervened and struck another man, 25-year-old Kyonta Taylor, knocking him to the ground. In response, Taylor pulled out a gun and shot Rayjon.
Wounded, Rayjon got into his vehicle and attempted to drive away from the scene. He did not get far before crashing his car into a retaining wall at the intersection of Second and University avenues. Emergency crews responded to the crash at approximately 5:30 a.m. and found Rayjon inside the vehicle, suffering from a critical gunshot injury. He was rushed to a local hospital, but he did not survive.
Investigators used evidence from the scene, including security surveillance video, to piece together the events that led to the shooting. The following day, police arrested Kyonta Taylor in connection with Rayjon's death. He was booked into the Polk County Jail and charged with voluntary manslaughter and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
In March 2026, Kyonta Taylor, then 26, pleaded guilty for his role in Rayjon Ray’s death. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison. Under the terms of his sentence, Taylor must serve a mandatory minimum of 20 years before he becomes eligible for parole.
