Biography
Erin Petra Escobar was detained and arrested during a July 17, 2025 protest against federal immigration-enforcement operations at the Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles. Prosecutors alleged that she marked federal property and assaulted an officer while being transported. She was later free on bond; the exact release date has not been verified.
The government’s March 24, 2026 trial memorandum in case 2:25-cr-00656-AB confirms actual detention during the July 17, 2025 Roybal Federal Building protest. Escobar faced assault under 18 U.S.C. § 111(a)(1) and misdemeanor depredation under § 1361; Gutierrez faced § 111(a)(1) and § 111(b) assault allegations. Judge André Birotte Jr. was assigned for a trial scheduled March 30. The memorandum presents the prosecution’s account, not a verdict, and its listed statutory maxima are not imposed sentences. It supplies no verified discharge date or completed custody duration. Source: https://www.nacdl.org/getattachment/311fbd9f-ed01-403b-bcc6-bd94aa272686/8-gov-uscourts-cacd-983288-59-0.pdf#page=1
In an April 1, 2026 filing in case 2:25-cr-00656-AB, prosecutors acknowledged that Federal Protective Service reports had been disclosed late, after cross-examination of the first government trial witness. The defense requested dismissal with prejudice or a mistrial; prosecutors opposed those requests and proposed alternatives including additional preparation time and recalling witnesses. This filing is the government’s argument, not a court ruling on those requests or a verdict. An attached officer report records Escobar’s placement in a federal holding cell at 300 N. Los Angeles Street at approximately 1:25 p.m. on July 17, 2025 and a subsequent custodial interview. It supplies no later release date. Source: https://www.nacdl.org/getattachment/b25dc0d4-6a00-4d44-a4a3-fd2532beb001/13-gov-uscourts-cacd-983288-86-0.pdf (PDF pages 1–6, 9, 12, 16).
On April 2, 2026, Judge André Birotte Jr. dismissed case 2:25-cr-00656-AB with prejudice as to Erin Petra Escobar and Nick Gutierrez. The Ninth Circuit dismissed the government’s appeal concerning Escobar in case 26-2776 on June 3, 2026. Sources: district court order, ECF 92, page 2; appeal order, ECF 8.
