Defendants in ICE detention center shooting appear in North Texas federal court
Six of the 17 defendants indicted in connection with the July 4 shooting outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in North Texas made their first appearance in federal court Monday.
Their appearance comes almost three months after an Alvarado police officer was shot in the neck while responding to a disturbance outside the Prairieland Detention Center.
The defendants and their supporters have argued they were participating in a “noise protest” and have accused the federal government of trying to silence them for their activism.
Federal officials allege the group participated in a “planned ambush” when at least one of the suspects fired 11 rounds at the ICE facility from a nearby tree line.
Four of the six defendants who appeared Monday in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth directly participated in the event on July 4, while the other two are charged with offenses that occurred afterward.
Around 10:37 p.m. on July 4, about 12 people started shooting fireworks at the ICE detention facility, according to an unsealed criminal complaint.
About 10 minutes later, one or two members of the group broke off to spray-paint vehicles and a guard booth with anti-ICE slogans. Two ICE corrections officers came out of the facility around 10:58 p.m. shortly after calling 911.
The bullets started flying about a minute later, after the Alvarado police officer arrived, according to the complaint. Investigators recovered an AR-style rifle near the location of one of the suspected shooters, which had apparently jammed, according to court documents.
Maricela Rueda, Savannah Batten, Joy Gibson and Elizabeth Soto appeared in court Monday on three counts of attempted murder and three counts of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime, according to an unsealed federal complaint.
Lynette Sharp is charged with accessory after the fact, according to a separate unsealed complaint.
Rebecca Morgan’s case is sealed, according to digital court records; however, records with the Johnson County Jail state she has been charged with hindering prosecution of terrorism.
None of the defendants spoke at the hearing.
Eight other defendants are expected to be arraigned Tuesday. They are Ines Soto, Seth Sikes, Autumn Hill, Nathan Baumann, Zachary Evetts, Meagan Morris, Benjamin Song and John Thomas.
Soto, Sikes, Hill, Baumann, Evetts and Morris were all arrested shortly after the July 4 incident and charged with three counts of attempted murder and three counts of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime, according to an unsealed federal complaint.
Song was arrested July 15 after a statewide manhunt, and was also charged with three counts of attempted murder and three counts of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime, according to an unsealed federal complaint.
Thomas was arrested July 14 and charged with accessory after the fact for allegedly helping Song evade authorities, according to an unsealed complaint.
Supporters of the defendants have raised concerns about their treatment in the Johnson County jail, and argued the nearly three-month wait for their arraignment meant the government has a weak case.
Representatives for the Department of Justice declined to comment on the gap between the arrest and arraignment of the defendants.
A group calling itself the DFW Support Committee has been raising money to support the defendants’ legal bills. The group had raised $40,249 as of 5 p.m. on Sept. 22.
It’s not clear when the case could go to trial.
If convicted, the defendants accused of taking part in the July 4 incident could face life in prison. Morgan, Thomas and Sharpe are facing up to 15 years in jail.
This story was originally published September 23, 2025 at 9:14 AM.
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