Toronto Star
· collected 2026-09-12 · by Jaimie Ding And Claire Rush The Associated Press
The U.S. Justice Department failed to secure felony convictions against most of the 102 protesters arrested in four major cities last year on charges of assaulting federal authorities — a record far below the norm in federal assault prosecutions.
asserted
Department → fail → prosecutions
All of the dozen cases that made it to trial, mostly in Los Angeles, ended in acquittal, mistrial or dismissal.
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that → make → acquittal
Experts say that’s surprising for a department known for its ability to win at trial.
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that → say → trial
The last three felony assault cases, in LA and Portland, will go to trial this fall.
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cases → go → trial
The dismal record has raised questions about rushed investigations and aggressive charging tactics by prosecutors under pressure to show the Trump administration is cracking down on people who assault law enforcement.
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who → raise → enforcement
It comes as the Justice Department is facing broader setbacks in politically charged investigations, with grand juries repeatedly refusing to return indictments and trial juries granting acquittals.
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juries → come → acquittals
“Prosecutors tend to win because they control what cases they pursue and they have a lot of resources and discretion,” said Mary Fan, a former federal prosecutor and law professor at the University of Washington.
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Fan → tend → Washington
The fact that the government failed to win any felony assault convictions at trial calls into question “whether or not these charges should have ever been brought in the first place,” she said.
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she → fail → place
AP tracked the outcome of 167 arrests
The Associated Press’ analysis focused on arrests made during protests last summer and fall in LA, Chicago, Portland, Oregon, and Washington, D.C. — cities with significant protests where President Donald Trump sought to or successfully deployed the National Guard.
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Trump → track → Guard
Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi said those who interfered with federal law enforcement would face “severe consequences.”
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who → say → consequences
Most of the arrests — 102 — were for felony assault on a federal officer, which can carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
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which → carry → prison
Of those cases, 41% were dismissed and 34% were pleaded down to misdemeanors.
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% → dismiss → misdemeanors
Ten people pleaded guilty to felony assault.
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people → plead → assault
Nine people got prison time.
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people → get → time
Of those arrested on other charges, seven were sentenced to prison for offenses including arson and obstructing law enforcement.
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seven → arrest → enforcement
A handful of defendants have diversion agreements, meaning their case will be dismissed if they demonstrate good behavior.
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they → have → behavior
The AP’s analysis shows that the Justice Department’s record failed to meaningfully improve since December, when an initial assessment showed early struggles to prosecute people on the charges for which they were arrested.
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they → show → which
The Justice Department said in a statement that federal prosecutors are right to prioritize cases against people accused of assaulting federal officers and that “each case is based on the facts.”
“If there are mitigating factors identified in a case, then prosecutors must also act appropriately to inform the court, and in some cases downgrade or drop charges,” the department said.
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department → say → charges
Juries and judges were unconvinced by prosecutors
It’s rare for federal prosecutors to lose at trial.
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prosecutors → ’ → trial
In 2024, 82% of defendants charged with felony or misdemeanor assault were convicted at trial or with a plea deal, according to data from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
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% → charge → Courts
AP’s analysis found that less than half of the protesters charged for either felony or misdemeanor assault were convicted.
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half → find → assault
In Portland, a jury couldn’t reach agreement on felony assault charges for Oriana Korol, who was playing clarinet in a marching band demonstrating outside the city’s ICE building last October when a scuffle involving officers broke out.
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scuffle → reach → officers
Officers pepper sprayed her and pushed her to the ground, where she struck one with her foot, according to court documents.
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she → spray → documents
After a mistrial, prosecutors filed a reduced misdemeanor assault charge.
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prosecutors → file → charge
She pleaded guilty and was sentenced Sept. 1 to time served and one year of supervised release.
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She → plead → release
Her attorneys wrote in a court filing that she “has accepted responsibility for the bad choices she made over a few seconds that caused no injury.”
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that → write → injury
Jonathan Caravello, a lecturer at California State University Channel Islands, was acquitted of assault on a federal officer after a three-day trial.
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Caravello → acquit → trial
He was accused of throwing a tear gas canister deployed by immigration agents back at them while protesting a raid at a Southern California cannabis farm.
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He → accuse → farm
Caravello said he was trying to get the canister away from the crowd.
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he → say → crowd
Videos showed he had tossed it high above officers’ heads and it landed far behind them.
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it → show → them
The jury acquitted Caravello after a quick deliberation.
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jury → acquit → deliberation
“They’re trying to get a chilling effect out of these charges,” said Caravello, who turned down a misdemeanor plea deal.
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who → try → deal
Michael Rabbitt was among six co-defendants accused of felony conspiracy to impede a government vehicle from accessing an ICE facility near Chicago last September.
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Rabbitt → accuse → Chicago
The vehicle slowly advanced despite being surrounded by protesters, leading some to put their hands on it, Rabbitt said.
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Rabbitt → advance → it
After the government dismissed charges against two of the defendants, defense attorneys requested transcripts of the grand jury proceedings that led to the conspiracy indictment.
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that → dismiss → indictment
The government eventually dropped the conspiracy charge and proceeded on misdemeanor counts of impeding a federal officer.
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government → drop → officer
The judge later reviewed the unredacted transcripts and admonished prosecutors for improper behavior before the grand jury.
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judge → review → jury
The charges were dismissed days before trial.
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charges → dismiss → trial
Rabbitt said he was proud they fought the charges.
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they → say → charges
“This case was bigger than us,” he said.
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he → say → us
…and 16 more, not listed.
