SAN FRANCISCO (AP) 鈥� A judge declared a mistrial Friday in the case of five current and former Stanford University students charged after pro-Palestinian protests in 2024, when they barricaded themselves inside the university president and provost executive offices.
The was a rare instance of demonstrators facing felony charges from protests over the Israel-Hamas war that roiled campuses across the country. The two sides argued over free speech, lawful dissent and crime during the three-week proceedings.
The jury voted 9 to 3 to convict on a felony charge of vandalism and 8 to 4 to convict on a felony charge of conspiracy to trespass. After deliberating for five days, jurors said they could not reach a verdict.
Judge Hanley Chew asked each one if more time deliberating would help break the impasse, and all answered, 鈥淣o.鈥�
鈥淚t appears that this jury is hopelessly deadlocked, and I鈥檓 now declaring a mistrial in counts one and two,鈥� Chen said. He then dismissed the jurors.
Demonstrators barricaded themselves inside the offices for , the last day of spring classes at the university.
Prosecutors said the defendants spray-painted the building, broke windows and furniture, disabled security cameras and splattered a red liquid described as fake blood on items throughout the offices.
Defense attorneys said the protest was protected speech and there was insufficient evidence of an intent to damage the property. They also said the students wore protective gear and barricaded the offices out of fear of being injured by police and campus security.
If convicted, the defendants would have faced up to three years in prison and been obligated to pay restitution of over $300,000.
Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said he would pursue a new trial.
鈥淭his case is about a group of people who destroyed someone else鈥檚 property and caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage,鈥� Rosen said in a statement. 鈥淭hat is against the law and that is why we will retry the case.鈥�
As the mistrial was announced, the students, some wearing kaffiyehs, sat on a bench in the courtroom and did not show a visible reaction.
鈥淭he District Attorney’s Office had Stanford University supporting them and other multibillion-dollar institutions behind them, and even then the district attorney was unable to convict us,鈥� Germ谩n Gonz谩lez, who was a sophomore at Stanford when he was arrested, told The Associated Press by phone later. 鈥淣o matter what happens, we will continue to fight tooth and nail for as long as possible, because at the end of the day, this is for Palestine.鈥�
Authorities initially arrested and charged 12 people in the case, but one pleaded no contest under an agreement that allows some young people to have their cases dismissed and records sealed if they successfully complete probation.
He testified for the prosecution, leading to a grand jury of the others. Six of those accepted pretrial plea deals or diversion programs, and the remaining five pleaded not guilty and sought a jury trial.
Protests sprung up on over the Israel-Hamas conflict, with students setting up camps and demanding their universities with Israel or companies that support its war efforts .
About 3,200 people were arrested in 2024 nationwide. While some colleges ended demonstrations by with students or simply waited them out, others called in police. Most criminal charges were ultimately dismissed.
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This story has been updated to correct the jury counts on the two charges.
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