Draconian sentences handed down against protesters at an ICE facility in the Dallas-Fort Worth area are being characterized as an abridgment of their First Amendment rights. The reason: Among the bill of particulars used against them in court were anarchist zines in their possession that they tried to hide from authorities.
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But though the case raises serious questions about the proportionality of their sentences, it’s also a lot more complicated than that given that a police officer who responded to the scene was shot in the neck by one of the protesters. Benjamin Song, who was convicted of attempted murder, was sentenced to 100 years in prison. The officer recovered.