PORTLAND, Ore. — A man who threw a rock that struck a federal officer in the head during a protest outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland last June was sentenced Thursday to 30 months in prison.
Robert Jacob Hoopes pleaded guilty to aggravated assault of a federal employee with a dangerous weapon under a plea deal, according to court documents. The incident occurred during a demonstration at the ICE facility that drew federal law enforcement officers.
U.S. District Judge Adrienne Nelson, in addition to the prison term, sentenced Hoopes to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay more than $8,000 in restitution.
“Today’s message is clear — violence is not a protest,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon Scott Bradford said in a statement. “When you cross the line and assault a federal officer, you will be prosecuted.”
According to prosecutors, Hoopes threw a rock that hit an officer in the head, opening a gash over the officer’s eye. The assault occurred during a protest last June — the article does not specify the exact date — outside the ICE building in Portland.
Hoopes’s sentencing is the latest in a series of federal criminal cases arising from confrontations between protesters and law enforcement at the Portland ICE facility, which has been a flashpoint for demonstrations against immigration enforcement policies. Earlier this year, a federal judge temporarily restricted the use of tear gas by agents responding to protests outside the same building, though an appeals court later paused that order.
In recent months, MSI has reported on multiple cases nationwide in which protesters and immigration officers have faced charges stemming from clashes at ICE-related demonstrations, including an immigration officer charged with assault after a protest in Colorado and a California man charged with assaulting an officer after being shot by ICE agents.