Three protesters, known as the “Spokane 3,” were convicted on Thursday of federal conspiracy charges related to their involvement in protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The protests occurred in Washington state last year. Defendants Jac Archer, Justice Forral, and Bajun Mavalwalla II were accused of attempting to stop federal officers from transferring two detained immigrants from Spokane to Tacoma in June 2025, as reported by KUOW.
These individuals were part of a large group of demonstrators who responded to a social media call by former Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart. The post urged supporters to block the transfer bus, given that Stuckart was sponsoring one of the immigrants seeking asylum in the U.S.
In a related incident, a man in Washington state was investigated for threatening ICE agents online, promising to make their lives harder. Meanwhile, protesters held signs like “Stop ICE” as Seattle police removed them during a bill-signing event with Governor Bob Ferguson in March 2026.
Stuckart and nine other protesters were arrested on conspiracy charges. According to KUOW, Stuckart and five others accepted plea deals for reduced sentences.
You started this and you couldn’t even show up to finish it,
said Washington state Representative Natasha Hill, D-Spokane, criticizing Stuckart for missing the proceedings. Hill called on Stuckart and others to continue advocating for their community.
Stuckart later explained on Facebook that attending the trial would have breached his parole terms. I feel awful about the guilty verdict, he wrote, expressing support for both those who accepted plea deals and those who went to trial.
In a separate protest event, federal agents detained an anti-ICE protester in Portland, Oregon, during a demonstration against federal immigration enforcement tactics. The protest occurred outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building on October 12, 2025.
Stuckart also reaffirmed his commitment to helping the detained individuals, stating he was doing his best to support them.
Bajun Mavalwalla Sr., father of one of the convicted and a congressional candidate, accused federal prosecutors of using the case as a warning to deter others from opposing immigration enforcement policies. He argued that fundamental rights like protest and assembly are being questioned due to this case.
He noted that other similar cases across the country had been dismissed due to untainted juries.