It’s often said that a prosecutor can get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich. However, a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., has refused to indict a former Justice Department paralegal accused of assaulting a federal officer with a thrown sandwich, a stunning setback that the New York Times reports exposes growing resistance to President Donald Trump’s dictatorial federal takeover of the city’s policing.
The case stems from an August 10 encounter at 14th and U Streets in Northwest Washington, one of the capital’s busiest nightlife corridors. According to bystanders who spoke to The Advocate, a man had been turned away from Bunker, a gay nightclub underneath a Subway restaurant, for being intoxicated before he went upstairs to order food. Court filings allege that Sean Charles Dunn then confronted a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer, shouted “F**k you! You f**king fascists! Why are you here? I don’t want you in my city!” and then threw a Subway sandwich that struck the officer in the chest.
A bystander video quickly spread on social media, showing Dunn winding up with the sandwich before tossing it. He was arrested within minutes and, according to the court documents, admitted in custody, “I did it. I threw a sandwich.” After his arrest, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that Dunn had been fired from his position at the DOJ. MAGA faithful former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, charged Dunn with assaulting a federal officer, a felony offense that prosecutors presented to the grand jury. Despite the confession and video evidence, jurors declined to indict, the Times reports, marking the second consecutive rejection of a felony case against a federal agent in as many weeks.
The failed prosecution has helped turn Dunn into an unlikely folk hero. As the Washingtonian reported, murals of the “Sandwich Guy” have appeared across the city. Protest art casts him as a brash symbol of resistance, and T-shirts with slogans like “One Small Sub for Man… One Giant Gesture for Democracy” are selling briskly, with proceeds going to local food nonprofits. Friends of Dunn’s have told The Advocate that he’s a well-known fixture in the D.C. LGBTQ+ community. What began as a minor outburst has become a rallying point in a city uneasy about the presence of roving groups of masked federal law enforcement agents and armed National Guard troops on its streets.
Earlier this month, Trump invoked the rarely used Home Rule Act to federalize D.C.’s police and deploy hundreds of National Guard troops and federal agents. He framed the move as a crackdown on violent crime, even though city statistics show homicides and assaults have plunged to 30-year lows. Critics quickly called it political theater.
Public opinion reflects that skepticism. A Washington Post–Schar School poll found eight in ten D.C. residents oppose Trump’s policing surge, with a majority saying the presence of federal agents actually makes them feel less safe. Only 31 percent of respondents said crime remains a serious issue, down sharply from previous years.
The White House has leaned into performance. Days after Dunn’s arrest, officials released a stylized video of a SWAT-style raid on his apartment, titled “Nighttime Routine: Operation Make D.C. Safe Again Edition.” With multiple camera angles and cinematic cuts, the footage was widely criticized as propaganda.
The crackdown has also rattled the LGBTQ+ community clustered around the same U Street corridor where Dunn’s confrontation occurred. Bar owner in nearby Adams Morgan, Dave Perruzza, told The Advocate that even long-standing LGBTQ+ liaison officers with the Metropolitan Police are no longer welcome under the new federal regime. “It makes the community feel even less safe,” he said, urging residents to support local nightlife businesses in defiance of the chilling effect.
The grand jury’s refusal to indict, despite video evidence and a confession, suggests jurors were unwilling to criminalize what many saw as a symbolic protest. Whether prosecutors will try again with reduced charges remains uncertain.
The Advocate contacted Dunn’s attorney, Sabrina Shroff, who declined to comment.
This article originally appeared on Advocate: Federal grand jury rejects DOJ indictment effort in D.C. Subway sandwich-throwing case