Now, defendants are entering into what are known as stipulated orders of continuance, or SOCs.
The criminal cases against 33 people accused of occupying a UW engineering building are expected to end without criminal convictions or restitution paid to the University of Washington, following 16 months of legal wrangling and $1 million in damages.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged 33 people in March with first-degree criminal trespass stemming from the May 2025 occupation of the university’s Interdisciplinary Engineering Building, or IEB.
Prosecutors did not charge anyone with causing the extensive property damage inside the building, saying investigators could not identify the specific people responsible.
Now, defendants are entering into what are known as stipulated orders of continuance, or SOCs.
Casey McNerthney, a spokesperson for the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, told KOMO News that 19 of the 33 defendants had entered the agreements as of Monday.
Under the agreements, defendants must go a year without a new criminal law violation, comply with court orders, and typically perform community service. If they successfully complete those requirements, prosecutors will move to dismiss their cases.
“They’ll agree to the facts of the police report, and if there is a new law violation, not of the same type, it could be any type, then you go before the court,” McNerthney said.
One stipulated order reviewed by KOMO News requires the defendant to perform 40 hours of community service within 90 days and commit no further criminal law violations, assaultive behavior, or harassing behavior. The order states that if the defendant complies, the state will move to dismiss the charge. It also states that the agreement itself is not an admission or finding of guilt.
The outcome means defendants who successfully complete the SOC will not have a criminal conviction stemming from the IEB occupation.
“The record of the stipulated order is still in the court file, but it doesn’t show up as a conviction,” McNerthney said.
The resolutions are the latest development in a case that has generated criticism from some UW alumni and community groups, who have questioned why no one has been charged with destroying the building.
Video from the May 2025 incident showed masked protesters occupying the newly opened IEB as part of a protest over UW’s relationship with Boeing and the war in Gaza. UW accused the group of breaking into the building, spray-painting walls and damaging equipment. Police ultimately arrested 33 people inside.
But prosecutors have repeatedly said the evidence did not establish who caused the destruction.
“There was never a case that showed a specific person who caused felony-level damage, or even accomplice liability under the requirements of state law,” McNerthney said.
McNerthney said prosecutors spent months working with UW police to determine whether felony malicious mischief or burglary cases could be proved.
UW police ultimately informed prosecutors in December 2025 that investigators could not establish more than criminal trespass, according to McNerthney.
“We don’t have the evidence for felony malicious mischief or burglary, which are the felonies that they were trying to prove,” McNerthney said of UW police’s conclusion. “There weren’t cameras in the building when that happened.”
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | UW ends suspensions from IEB takeover, vandalism but no charges filed
The lack of cameras inside the building had previously been cited by prosecutors as a major obstacle.
The misdemeanor trespass cases also provide no mechanism to order the defendants to repay the university for the property damage, McNerthney said.
“With misdemeanors, there isn’t the option for restitution,” he said. “Not only do you not have the evidence from police investigators to prove a felony, but you also don’t have the option under the law to ask for restitution.”
McNerthney said that has been frustrating to police, prosecutors and people connected to UW who have seen images of the destruction.
First-degree criminal trespass is a gross misdemeanor. McNerthney said that while the maximum punishment can include 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine, prosecutors believed it was highly unlikely a judge would impose anything approaching the maximum penalties in these cases, particularly for defendants without significant criminal histories.
“There’s not a guarantee, even if we took these cases to trial, and for each one of them, there’s not a guarantee that it would be successful,” McNerthney said. He added that even after convictions, “it’s actually likely that the court would not do more than these stipulated orders of continuance.”
McNerthney said the decision was not driven by the cost of conducting as many as 33 separate trials.
“It’s not a budget issue,” he said. “It’s just the unfortunate reality that we face with the evidence that we have.”
Twenty-three of the 33 people arrested were UW students at the time.
Earlier this year, UW Vice President Sally Clark told KOMO News that those students had completed three quarters of suspension through the university’s separate student conduct process and were eligible to return to school.
“You have to hold people accountable for what they are held accountable for, for what they have been charged with and found to be accountable for,” Clark said. “The evidence has to match up with what they’re charged with.”
Clark acknowledged at the time that the lack of security cameras made determining responsibility for the property damage more difficult. She said cameras had since been installed at entrances and main-floor landings in the building.
On Monday, UW spokesperson Victor Balta said the criminal resolutions would have no additional effect on the students’ standing at the university.
“We appreciate the work and attention from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on this matter,” Balta wrote in a statement to KOMO News. “As for the students involved, these orders have no bearing on their status with the UW. Their suspensions have been served.”
The activist group Super UW, which has supported the defendants, characterized the agreements on social media as a victory for the “UW 33” and the Palestinian movement. Its post said the defendants would avoid trials, jail time, fines and restitution if they successfully complete the agreements.
McNerthney pushed back on characterizing the outcome as a vindication of what happened inside the IEB.
“There’s not a satisfying answer here,” he said. “If we had even one felony case that we could prove, it would be a very different story.”
Prosecutors say improvements made since the occupation, including security cameras inside the building and additional investigative experience for UW police, could provide substantially different evidence if a similar incident occurs again.
“There are cameras in those buildings where there weren’t before,” McNerthney said. “There’s better expertise from UW police on how to handle these investigations.”
“We hope this doesn’t happen again,” he added. “If something like this does, police are in a better spot to handle it.”
