Former US Marine Sentenced to 100 Years for Shooting at Protest

A former US Marine reservist and seven others have been sentenced to a combined total of decades in prison for a shooting that wounded a police officer during a protest at an immigration detention center in Texas last year.

On April 8, Benjamin Song, a former Marine reservist, received the maximum sentence of 100 years in prison for the July 4 shooting outside the Prairieland Detention Center near Dallas. The seven other defendants received sentences ranging from 30 to 70 years.

Prosecutors labeled the crime a 'terrorist act' and alleged that the eight individuals were linked to the left-wing antifa movement, which President Donald Trump once designated a 'domestic terrorist organization.' However, the defense denied any connection to antifa.

'I am absolutely furious,' said Lydia Koza, wife of Autumn Hill, who was sentenced to 50 years. 'The government wants to take her whole life away just for attending a protest. No one died.'

US District Judge Reed O'Connor, one of two judges overseeing the trial, said what happened was not a protest but 'an attack on democracy.' All but one of the eight defendants were convicted of terrorism.

The case has drawn national attention, with critics warning it could have far-reaching implications for protest rights and free speech under the First Amendment of the US Constitution.

The Department of Justice called it the first time 'defendants linked to' antifa have been convicted after Trump signed an executive order designating the group as a 'terrorist organization' on September 22. In reality, no mechanism similar to the State Department's list of 'foreign terrorist organizations' applies domestically.

Antifa is not a single organization but an umbrella term for leftist activist groups that confront or oppose neo-fascists and white supremacists at protests.

Prosecutors told the jury that the group's conduct—including carrying weapons, medical kits, and wearing body armor—indicated malicious intent. According to the Department of Justice, Song shouted 'Get the guns' before opening fire, hitting a police officer who had just arrived at the center.

Defense lawyers said there was no ambush plan, and protesters carried guns only for self-defense. They argued that the gathering was planned as a late-night fireworks demonstration to show support for immigrants held at Prairieland before the shooting occurred.

Phillip Hayes, Song's attorney, rejected the characterization of the defendants as 'extremists' and said his client will appeal the 100-year sentence. 'This is a group of young people and youths with very big hearts who really wanted their voices to be heard. There was never an intention to hurt anyone or to fire a gun,' Hayes said.

Prosecutor Frank Gatto urged the judge to impose severe sentences. 'People with such extreme beliefs need more time behind bars. They believe violence is justified,' Gatto said.

The defendants and their families pleaded for leniency. Autumn Hill said the gathering 'was more like a party than anything else' and she and other participants 'did not expect or want any violence or property damage.' Hill's attorney, Cody Cofer, told the judge there was no evidence she had a weapon or believed in violence to achieve change. He said after setting off fireworks, she even cleaned up trash before leaving.

Chris Tolbert, attorney for defendant Savanna Batten, said his client brought no weapons, spray paint, or fireworks to the center and did not participate in planning the protest. Both Hill and Batten received 50-year sentences.

Another protester, Daniel Sanchez Estrada, was not present at Prairieland the night of the shooting and was not involved in planning, according to his attorney, Christopher Weinbel. Sanchez Estrada was only convicted of concealing documents and sentenced to 30 years. Weinbel said his client merely moved a box of personal items containing artwork, poetry, diaries, and a small magazine after the shooting, and nothing in the box was illegal.

Other defendants had previously pleaded guilty to providing material support for 'terrorism' rather than going to trial. Last week, federal prosecutors charged 15 people in Minnesota with obstructing the Trump administration's immigration enforcement campaign, alleging they were antifa members who erected barricades around government buildings and threw rocks at federal vehicles.