Stanford felony vandalism case ends in mistrial

"It was not an acquittal, but for five activists facing potential felony convictions for a protest held on the Stanford University campus in 2024, a mistrial declared Friday by a Santa Clara County judge was seen as a victory. Jurors split 84 in favor of guilt on conspiracy charges and 93 on felony vandalism charges, falling short of the unanimous verdict required for conviction of all five people. After polling jurors who all said they did not believe that further deliberations could produce a verdict Judge Hanley Chew declared a mistrial."

"District Attorney Jeff Rosen said he would seek another trial. This case is about a group of people who destroyed someone else's property and caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage, Rosen said. That is against the law and that is why we will retry the case."

"The case centered around five of the 13 people initially arrested in connection with damage to Stanford University's executive offices during a June 2024 protest calling on the university to divest from companies linked to Israel, months after the country's military response to the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas drew withering criticism for suffering inflicted on the residents of the Gaza Strip. Opening statements began in early January, and the trial concluded later the same month. The others initially arrested either accepted plea deals or were granted diversion programs."

A Santa Clara County judge declared a mistrial for five activists after jurors split 8-4 on conspiracy charges and 9-3 on felony vandalism charges, short of the unanimous verdict required. The judge polled jurors, who said further deliberations could not produce a verdict. Prosecutors announced plans to retry the case and described the charges as involving destruction of property and hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage. The protest occurred in June 2024 on Stanford's campus calling for divestment from companies linked to Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks and subsequent military response. Thirteen people were initially arrested; others resolved their cases through plea deals or diversion programs. The five defendants thanked supporters outside the courtroom after the mistrial.

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