Texas Protesters Convicted of Terrorism Support

Nine individuals were convicted on Friday in Texas for providing material support to terrorists and other charges, stemming from a 2025 protest at the Prairieland detention center. The case, which concluded in March 2026, tested the application of broad anti-terrorism statutes against left-wing protesters in the United States.

The defendants, including Benjamin Song, Zachary Evetts, Autumn Hill, Meagan Morris, Maricela Rueda, Savanna Batten, Ines Soto, Elizabeth Soto, and Daniel Sanchez-Estrada, faced charges that included rioting, attempted murder, and firearms offenses. Prosecutors alleged the anti-ICE activists were part of an antifa cell, marking the first time the U.S. government pursued such a claim in a criminal prosecution. Benjamin Song was convicted of one count of attempted murder and firearms charges, while Evetts, Hill, Morris, and Rueda were acquitted of attempted murder and firearms charges. Sanchez-Estrada was convicted of corruptly concealing a document.

The convictions follow a 2025 incident where demonstrators, some armed, gathered at the detention center. During the protest, property damage occurred, and a police officer was shot in the shoulder by an AR-15. The Trump administration had previously designated antifa as a domestic terrorist group, despite legal challenges to this authority. The DFW Support Committee, which backed the defendants, stated they would appeal the verdicts.