Demonstrator Sues after Being Handcuffed and Detained for Playing the Star Wars “Imperial March” Theme to Protest National Guard Members in D.C.  

Complaint details how the man was tightly handcuffed and prevented from exercising his First Amendment rights

WASHINGTON — Today, Sam O’Hara, who played “The Imperial March” theme from Star Wars while recording National Guard troops on the streets of Washington, D.C., sued an Ohio National Guard member and four Metropolitan Police Department officers for violating his constitutional rights and D.C. law. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Mr. O’Hara by the American Civil Liberties Union of the District of Columbia (ACLU-D.C.).

After President Trump’s August 11 deployment of D.C. National Guard members and several states’ decisions to send members of their State National Guards to join them in D.C., Sam O’Hara began protesting the Guard members’ presence in his community by walking behind them while playing “The Imperial March” on his phone and recording. Mr. O’Hara posted the videos of these recordings on his TikTok account, where millions of people have viewed them.

On September 11, 2025, Mr. O’Hara saw Ohio National Guard member Sgt. Beck and several other Guard members walking in uniform near the intersection of 14th and Q Streets NW. He stood several feet behind the Guard members, began playing “The Imperial March”—the song that announces Darth Vader—aloud on his phone, and started recording. In less than two minutes, Sgt. Beck turned around and threatened to call the police officers to “handle” Mr. O’Hara if he did not stop. Mr. O’Hara continued, and Sgt. Beck called the Metropolitan Police Department. When the police arrived in response to this call, they tightly handcuffed and detained Mr. O’Hara for between 15 and 20 minutes.

As today’s complaint explains, “the First Amendment bars government officials from restraining individuals from recording or protesting, and the Fourth Amendment (along with the District’s prohibition on false arrest) bars groundless seizures.” The complaint alleges that Sgt. Beck violated the law by calling D.C. police in an effort to stop Mr. O’Hara from protesting and recording, and the Metropolitan Police Department officers broke the law by detaining and tightly handcuffing Mr. O’Hara for a prolonged period of time.

“Armed National Guard should not be policing D.C. residents as we walk around our neighborhoods,” said Sam O’Hara, plaintiff in the case. “It was important to me not to normalize this dystopian occupation. Instead of respecting my right to protest, police officers handcuffed me so tightly my wrists were still marked and sore the next day. This shows the danger of deploying troops onto American streets: it puts all our basic rights at risk.”

“The government doesn't get to decide if your protest is funny, and government officials can’t punish you for making them the punchline. That’s really the whole point of the First Amendment,” said Michael Perloff, senior staff attorney at ACLU-D.C.

Link to the complaint: https://www.acludc.org/app/uploads/2025/10/20251023-OHARA-COMPL-FILED.pdf