Rosalind Casillas was found not guilty after she was charged with resisting arrest and assault on a law enforcement officer while peacefully protesting Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s cuts to crucial HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programs at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on May 14. Ms. Casillas was represented by Brown, Goldstein & Levy attorneys Jacqueline Cadman and Alisha Jarwala.
During Ms. Casillas’s protest, a United States Capitol Police officer used excessive force, throwing her to the ground and dragging her out of a senate committee room. Despite the fact that Ms. Casillas was the one injured, she was then wrongfully charged with resisting arrest and assault on a law enforcement officer.
The case went to trial on November 10 in the District of Columbia Superior Court. On November 12, the jury found Ms. Casillas not guilty of all charges after deliberating for less than 45 minutes.
“The jury’s verdict affirms what we’ve maintained from the beginning: Rosalind Casillas was exercising her constitutional right to peacefully protest and never resisted arrest or assaulted a police officer,” said BGL partner Jacqueline Cadman, who leads the firm’s criminal defense section. “The jury saw through the prosecution’s attempt to criminalize dissent and recognized that raising your voice is democracy in action.”
Ms. Casillas works for Housing Works, a New York City-based nonprofit that provides services to homeless and low-income New Yorkers living with and affected by HIV/AIDS. Ms. Casillas has dedicated her life to advocating for quality housing and services for Housing Works clients.
“Our right to peacefully protest is being jeopardized by the current administration,” said BGL attorney Alisha Jarwala. “While it’s fantastic that a jury found Ms. Casillas not guilty of all charges, these charges should have never been brought in the first place. What happened to Ms. Casillas could happen to anyone exercising their right to protest.”
Ms. Casillas looks forward to returning her focus to her family and clients without the fear of unjust prosecution looming over her.
“The verdict in Ms. Casillas’s case sends the United States Attorney’s Office a clear message—in Washington, D.C., peaceful protest is still protected under the First Amendment,” Alisha continued.
ABOUT JACQUELINE CADMAN
Jacqueline Cadman is widely regarded as one of the best criminal trial lawyers in the Washington D.C. and Baltimore metro areas. She brings to the firm 20 years of experience as a seasoned trial attorney who works tirelessly to give a voice to individuals facing unjust government or state treatment, prosecution or investigation. Jacqui fights to make sure that her clients are protected and that their voices are heard in a system that is designed to silence them. Learn more about Jacqui here.
ABOUT ALISHA JARWALA
Alisha Jarwala joined Brown, Goldstein & Levy in June 2025 to advocate for clients across a wide range of practice areas, including criminal defense, civil rights, housing discrimination, appeals, class actions, commercial litigation, and more. Before joining the firm, Alisha served as a trial attorney at the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section of the Civil Rights Division at the U.S. Department of Justice, where she investigated and litigated complex Fair Housing Act and Equal Credit Opportunity Act cases. Learn more about Alisha here.
ABOUT BROWN, GOLDSTEIN & LEVY
Founded in 1982, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a law firm based in Baltimore, Maryland, with an office in Washington, DC. The firm is nationally recognized in a wide variety of practice areas, including complex civil and commercial litigation, civil rights, health care, family law, and criminal defense. Above all else, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a client-centered law firm that brings decades of experience and passionate, effective advocacy to your fight for justice.