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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMan who protested Trump DC surge with 'Star Wars' music awarded payout: 'I'm pleased'
Last edited Tue Jun 30, 2026, 10:26 AM - Edit history (1)
This made me smile
A Washington, D.C. resident who protested President Donald Trumpâs surge of National Guard troops in the nationâs capital was awarded a âsignificantâ settlement after being placed in handcuffs last year for following troops while playing the "Imperial Marchâ score from âStar Wars.
— Raw Story (@rawstory.com) 2026-06-29T17:30:13Z
https://www.rawstory.com/washington-dc-2677124345/
A Washington, D.C. resident who protested President Donald Trumps surge of National Guard troops in the nations capital was awarded a significant settlement after being placed in handcuffs last year for following troops while playing Star Wars music.
Im pleased that the D.C. police recognize their part in violating my rights, said Sam OHara, speaking with The Washington Post Friday after having just reached a financial agreement with the D.C. government and four of its officers. I will say that Im pleased and [the settlement] was significant and meaningful.
Last fall, OHara followed a group of National Guard troops in D.C. while playing the "Imperial March, a menacing orchestrated piece typically associated with the iconic Darth Vader villain from the Star Wars franchise. Despite having pulled similar acts of protest in the past, one National Guard soldier in particular wasnt pleased with OHaras form of protest, and ended up contacting D.C. police.
With the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, OHara successfully sued the D.C. government over what he called his wrongful detention, though the specifics of the settlement were not disclosed by either party.
Im pleased that the D.C. police recognize their part in violating my rights, said Sam OHara, speaking with The Washington Post Friday after having just reached a financial agreement with the D.C. government and four of its officers. I will say that Im pleased and [the settlement] was significant and meaningful.
Last fall, OHara followed a group of National Guard troops in D.C. while playing the "Imperial March, a menacing orchestrated piece typically associated with the iconic Darth Vader villain from the Star Wars franchise. Despite having pulled similar acts of protest in the past, one National Guard soldier in particular wasnt pleased with OHaras form of protest, and ended up contacting D.C. police.
With the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, OHara successfully sued the D.C. government over what he called his wrongful detention, though the specifics of the settlement were not disclosed by either party.
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Man who protested Trump DC surge with 'Star Wars' music awarded payout: 'I'm pleased' (Original Post)
LetMyPeopleVote
Monday
OP
I see the photo in the article has a HUGE photo of Trump hanging from a building.
riversedge
Monday
#3
Rachel Maddow reveals stunning moment netted a big legal loss for Trump's enforcers
LetMyPeopleVote
Tuesday
#4
johnnyfins
(4,176 posts)1. He wasn't showing enough respect for his
Masters. Sounds like he had a heckuva case if they settled for a "significant" amount. Paid by the taxpayers, no doubt. Which is a scam.
malaise
(299,804 posts)2. Me too
Get thee to the greatest page 😀
riversedge
(82,313 posts)3. I see the photo in the article has a HUGE photo of Trump hanging from a building.
LetMyPeopleVote
(184,210 posts)4. Rachel Maddow reveals stunning moment netted a big legal loss for Trump's enforcers
Rachel had fun with this story last nigh
Rachel Maddow reveals stunning moment netted a big legal loss for Trump's enforcers #RawStory
— #TuckFrump (@realtuckfrumper.bsky.social) 2026-06-30T02:10:44.000Z
https://www.rawstory.com/ms-now-s-maddow-reveals-how-star-wars-netted-a-big-legal-loss-for-trump-s-enforcers/
Rachel Maddow kicked off her Monday night MS NOW program with a discussion of Star Wars and specifically, how one track from the original trilogy just cost the Trump administration a big settlement payout for unlawful police conduct.
"The Empire Strikes Back is just as exciting as the first Star Wars movie, but it is darker, it is definitely darker, right?" said Maddow. "Our heroes aren't, you know, just plucky underdogs like they were in the first movie. It really, really feels like they are losing ... it's dark. The whole vibe of The Empire Strikes Back is this, you know, the dark dread of this tyrannical force having the upper hand, seeming like it's winning."
Even if you aren't a Star Wars fan, Maddow continued, or have even seen the movies, you're likely to know one iconic piece of media from them, she continued. "This sound from The Empire Strikes Back still takes you right back to it, still puts you right back in that fear and dread of the terrible, evil Galactic Empire. John Williams' Imperial March from The Empire Strikes Back ... instant American pop culture shorthand for 'you're looking at tyranny,' right?"
Enter Sam O'Hara, Maddow said a protester who took it upon himself, during the initial Trump-mandated deployment of Washington, D.C., by the National Guard, to walk behind them blasting the Imperial March on his iPhone. She put up a clip of the incident.
For that, she said, "a National Guardsman summoned the D.C. police to arrest him for it. And they put him in handcuffs. For having done that, for having played that song." As of today, however, he has gotten a $50,000 settlement for that unlawful treatment by the police. Moreover, she noted, "his lawsuit against the National Guard is still pending. So there may yet be more to come."
"The Empire Strikes Back is just as exciting as the first Star Wars movie, but it is darker, it is definitely darker, right?" said Maddow. "Our heroes aren't, you know, just plucky underdogs like they were in the first movie. It really, really feels like they are losing ... it's dark. The whole vibe of The Empire Strikes Back is this, you know, the dark dread of this tyrannical force having the upper hand, seeming like it's winning."
Even if you aren't a Star Wars fan, Maddow continued, or have even seen the movies, you're likely to know one iconic piece of media from them, she continued. "This sound from The Empire Strikes Back still takes you right back to it, still puts you right back in that fear and dread of the terrible, evil Galactic Empire. John Williams' Imperial March from The Empire Strikes Back ... instant American pop culture shorthand for 'you're looking at tyranny,' right?"
Enter Sam O'Hara, Maddow said a protester who took it upon himself, during the initial Trump-mandated deployment of Washington, D.C., by the National Guard, to walk behind them blasting the Imperial March on his iPhone. She put up a clip of the incident.
For that, she said, "a National Guardsman summoned the D.C. police to arrest him for it. And they put him in handcuffs. For having done that, for having played that song." As of today, however, he has gotten a $50,000 settlement for that unlawful treatment by the police. Moreover, she noted, "his lawsuit against the National Guard is still pending. So there may yet be more to come."
bluestarone
(22,590 posts)5. From this day on, THAT music needs to be
used LOUDLY at every ICE demonstrations!! EVERY one of them...
NightWatcher
(39,391 posts)6. Hope the payout is enough for some bigger speakers