Dana El-Kurd

We're going to go on one more break and then return to discuss two more charges.

Okay, we're back.

Nine of the counts, count one, two, four, and five through ten, cited Pinkerton versus United States 1946.

Okay.

The judge explained this to the jury by saying that a defendant can be criminally liable for the offenses committed by another co-conspirator if the offense was, quote, reasonably foreseeable and committed in furtherance of the conspiracy.

With the judge writing in jury instructions, quote, a defendant can be found guilty and held criminally liable for an offense under Pinkerton co-conspirator liability, even if the defendant was not charged with conspiracy.

It is not required that the conspiracy agrees to commit or facilitate each and every part of a substantive offense that is in furtherance of the conspiracy.

A defendant must merely reach an agreement with the specific intent that the underlying criminal objective be achieved by the conspiracy."

unquote.

Early in the trial, prosecution argued that Song firing on the officers was quote-unquote reasonably foreseeable based on the planning of the action and previous statements made by Song.

But this Pickerton liability also applied to the other charges, including riot, material support to terrorism, and the explosive charge.

The jury found all defendants that were charged guilty of counts one, two, three, and four.

That's riot, material support, and two explosive charges.

but did not find the other defendants, besides Song, guilty of attempted murder or discharging a firearm using the Pinkerton co-conspirator liability.

The prosecution wanted the other individuals at the protest to be found guilty of the charges of attempted murder using the liability, and the jury did not do that.

Let's talk about two of the charges that now carry some worrying potential to be used against protesters in the future based on the precedent that this case sets.

First, the conspiracy to use and carry an explosive and using and carrying an explosive during a riot.

The only quote-unquote explosives at this noise demonstration protest are

were fireworks.

And the judge even confirmed that it was established that the fireworks caused no damage to the ICE facility.