Sentencing continues in Prairieland anti-ICE shooting case near Dallas
Six more defendants faced prison terms in the Prairieland case as judges weighed a July 4 shooting that wounded an Alvarado officer and split protest from violence.
Six defendants who pleaded guilty in the Prairieland Detention Center shooting case faced possible prison terms of up to 15 years on Wednesday in Fort Worth, as federal sentencing continued in a prosecution that began with gunfire outside the ICE facility in Alvarado, Texas, nearly a year ago. The July 4, 2025 attack wounded an Alvarado police officer in the neck and also targeted correctional officers, turning a protest against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown into one of the most consequential federal violent-crime cases in North Texas.
The Justice Department said eight other defendants were sentenced on June 23 to a combined 450 years in prison. Benjamin Hanil Song received 100 years, Maricela Rueda received 70, Cameron Arnold, Savanna Batten, Zachary Evetts, Bradford Morris and Elizabeth Soto each received 50 years, and Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada received 30 years. Federal prosecutors have said the case marked the first sentencing of defendants affiliated with Antifa after Trump’s September 2025 executive order designating the group a Domestic Terrorist Organization.
The case has moved through a rapid sequence of federal charges. Prosecutors first filed a complaint on July 8, 2025, naming 10 people, then added Song the next day. By November 14, 2025, a federal grand jury in Fort Worth had indicted nine North Texas defendants, while seven more were charged by information. In March 2026, a federal jury convicted nine defendants. The charges included rioting, weapons and explosives offenses, material support to terrorists, obstruction and attempted murder.
According to the initial complaint, the group wore black military-style clothing, used fireworks as a diversion, sprayed graffiti on vehicles and a guard structure, and fired AR-style rifles. Officers later recovered body armor, firearms, spray paint, flyers, radios and a Faraday bag. The Justice Department said 12 sets of body armor were found in searches tied to the defendants.
Prosecutors have described the defendants as members of a North Texas Antifa Cell who aimed the attack at law enforcement and the detention facility. Defense lawyers and relatives deny that characterization and have said they plan to appeal. Supporters outside court said the case could set a precedent for political protest and free speech, while some free-speech advocates warned the punishments could chill protest activity. With more sentencing still pending, the Prairieland case remains a test of how federal courts will treat violence that grows out of immigration-era protest.
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