(WASHINGTON) — Prosecutors failed to secure an indictment against the man accused of throwing a sandwich at a Customs and Border Patrol agent in Washington, D.C., sources familiar with the matter confirmed to ABC News on Wednesday.
It’s not immediately clear whether prosecutors with the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office would make another attempt at seeking a felony assault indictment against Sean Dunn.
The development was first reported by The New York Times.
Prosecutors similarly failed to convince a federal grand jury in D.C. to indict a woman, Sidney Reid, accused by the government of assaulting and FBI agent during an inmate swap with ICE, despite three separate attempts.
The D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office instead moved this week to charge the woman with a misdemeanor which would not require sign off from a grand jury.
Under the federal Speedy Trial Act, prosecutors technically have 30 days from the date of Dunn’s arrest to continue to seek his indictment or they will similarly have to choose between dropping the case altogether or moving to charge him with misdemeanor offenses.
The video of Dunn’s confrontation with a CBP agent earlier this month went viral and provoked an all-out public relations blitz from the White House and Justice Department touting his arrest and the federal assault charge against him.
The White House went as far as releasing a video showing a cadre of heavily armed agents carrying out his arrest, despite his attorney saying he had previously offered to surrender willingly.
Dunn’s attorney and the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
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