{"id":1815,"date":"2026-06-26T18:12:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T18:12:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=1815"},"modified":"2026-06-26T18:12:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T18:12:22","slug":"the-force-is-with-him-d-c-settles-with-man-who-protested-national-guard-using-darth-vaders-theme-song","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=1815","title":{"rendered":"The Force is with him: D.C. settles with man who protested National Guard using Darth Vader\u2019s theme song"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The District of Columbia has settled a lawsuit by a protester who said he was detained and handcuffed for following National Guard troops around the city while playing Darth Vader\u2019s theme song from \u201cStar Wars.\u201d <\/p>\n

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The terms of the were not immediately disclosed, but the American Civil Liberties Union, which represents demonstrator Sam O\u2019Hara in the case, said in a press release that he was receiving compensation. The group did not immediately respond to a request for more details.<\/p>\n

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The D.C. mayor\u2019s office, police department and attorney general\u2019s office also did not immediately respond to requests for comment. <\/p>\n

The incident happened in Sept. 2025, when O\u2019Hara, a D.C. resident, was protesting against President Donald Trump\u2019s decision to send National Guard troops to the city, and did so with music. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn the Star Wars franchise, The Imperial March is the music that plays when Darth Vader or other dark forces enter a scene or succeed in their dastardly plans. It is also the soundtrack of Sam O\u2019Hara\u2019s protest against the National Guard deployment in D.C.,\u201d his lawsuit said. <\/p>\n

\u201cMr. O\u2019Hara was deeply concerned about the normalization of troops patrolling D.C. neighborhoods. And so, he began protesting the Guard members\u2019 presence by walking several feet behind them when he saw them in the community. Using his phone and sometimes a small speaker, he played The Imperial March as he walked, keeping the music at a volume that was audible but not blaring,\u201d his suit said.<\/p>\n

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He recorded the encounters and posted the videos on TikTok, which have racked up millions of views. One of his targets, Ohio National Guard member Sgt. Devon Beck, \u201cwas not amused by this satire,\u201d the suit said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn less than two minutes, Sgt. Beck turned around and threatened to call D.C. police officers to \u2018handle\u2019 Mr. O\u2019Hara if he persisted. Mr. O\u2019Hara continued recording,\u201d the filing said. <\/p>\n

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Beck made good on his warning, and four Metropolitan Police officers responded and detained and cuffed O\u2019Hara, according to the lawsuit.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe law might have tolerated government conduct of this sort a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away,\u201d the suit said, referencing the opening credits of Star Wars. \u201cBut in the here and now, the First Amendment bars government officials from shutting down peaceful protests.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Hara filed suit against Beck, the officers and the city for violating his constitutional rights. <\/p>\n

The settlement does not end the suit; O\u2019Hara\u2019s are still pending. The Justice Department has argued that his actions are protected by qualified immunity and the claims should be dismissed.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

The government also complained that O\u2019Hara was \u201cbroadcasting distracting music.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cBeck could reasonably perceive that conduct as interfering with the patrol\u2019s movement and situational awareness, because an armed patrol must attend to nearby persons, maintain the ability to hear, and move without a civilian trailing it at close range,\u201d DOJ attorneys argued. <\/p>\n

\u201cMoreover, Beck and his fellow Guardsmen could have reasonably felt harassed by Plaintiff and concerned that he was following them and ignoring their requests to stop\u201d and concerned about O\u2019Hara\u2019s \u201cconduct creating a reasonable fear of imminent harm,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the Justice Department declined to comment. A representative for the Ohio National Guard did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the city\u2019s settlement. <\/p>\n

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The District of Columbia has settled a lawsuit by a protester who said he was detained and handcuffed for following National Guard troops around the city while playing Darth Vader\u2019s theme song from \u201cStar Wars.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1814,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trump-administration"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Force is with him: D.C. settles with man who protested National Guard using Darth Vader\u2019s theme song - Trusted Moving Group<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=1815\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Force is with him: D.C. settles with man who protested National Guard using Darth Vader\u2019s theme song - 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