A federal jury in Seattle on January 9, 2026, acquitted Victor Vivanco-Reyes of four felony counts of assaulting federal officers in a case that began with a dramatic June 6, 2025 confrontation on Camano Island. The verdict stunned federal prosecutors who had charged him after agents said his truck and trailer struck two government vehicles during an immigration enforcement operation.
According to court filings and government statements, Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection agents, backed by Air and Marine Operations, had been surveilling Vivanco-Reyes and attempted to take him into custody on an administrative immigration warrant. Prosecutors say when the agents converged, the truck accelerated into one vehicle and later crashed head-on into another, injuring two agents who needed hospital treatment.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office originally charged Vivanco-Reyes as a Mexican national residing in Stanwood with multiple felonies that carry severe penalties — assaulting federal officers with a deadly weapon can mean up to 20 years in prison. Court records show he was already the subject of an earlier attempted arrest on May 22, 2025, and that he remained in custody on an immigration hold after the June incident.
Defense lawyers argued that the encounter unfolded in a matter of seconds and that Vivanco-Reyes did not form the specific intent to assault the officers, pointing to evidence that the first collision was minor and that he fled only after the chaotic sequence of events. The judge excluded certain background evidence, including some of his prior history and a PTSD diagnosis, and the jury ultimately found reasonable doubt.
To patriotic Americans who back our border agents and law enforcement, this verdict will feel like a slap in the face — proof that in some liberal enclaves, juries are too quick to side with perceived grievances over clear threats to public safety. Local conservative outlets and commentators have rightly expressed outrage, arguing the outcome sends a dangerous message that driving at federal officers can be shrugged off as an accident or a misunderstanding.
This is not merely about one case; it’s about accountability and the rule of law. When prosecutors bring serious charges against someone accused of endangering federal agents and a jury returns an acquittal, elected officials and law enforcement leaders should explain why and, if necessary, seek policy or evidentiary reforms so similar situations don’t produce the same erosion of deterrence.
Hardworking Americans deserve a justice system that protects law-abiding citizens and the officers who put themselves in harm’s way, not one that reflexively excuses dangerous behavior because of politics or sympathy for an offender’s immigration status. If our communities are to remain safe, conservatives must keep pushing for stronger border security, firmer support for federal agents, and prosecutors who pursue cases that reflect the seriousness of the alleged conduct.
