An arrest warrant was issued, and subsequently withdrawn, for Dr. Jill Stein by a judge in Missouri after she and her counsel failed to appear in court for a 2024 assault and trespassing charge.
St. Louis Judge Karma Johnson of the 22nd Judicial Circuit issued an order for Stein's arrest without bond on Monday, Aug. 17, after the 76-year-old and her attorney failed to appear again in court that morning, according to court documents reviewed by USA TODAY.
However, the judge later quashed the warrant after the defense counsel appeared in court. The next proceeding has been set for Sept. 14 with all parties and their counsel, including Stein, who the judge ordered to appear in person. Failure to do so can be grounds for arrest, according to court documents.
USA TODAY contacted Stein’s campaign and attorney for comment, but has not received a response as of Aug. 18.
Charges stem from Washington University protest
The 2024 presidential candidate for the Green Party was charged with one count of first-degree trespassing and one count of fourth-degree assault stemming from her participation in a Washington University in St. Louis campus protest in April 2024.
Court documents highlight Stein's involvement in the "unregistered demonstration" on April 27, 2024, at Washington University's Danforth campus, just two days before final exams were scheduled to begin. The complaint alleged that the demonstration violated the university's policies as protesters took over the campus, "drumming" and chanting "phrases associated with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
The probable cause statement alleges that despite several warnings, the demonstrators refused to back down. Then, when a final warning was issued, Stein "interlocked arms with other defendants and refused to leave," loudly chanting “hold the line," according to court documents.
As an officer at the demonstration approached the crowd on a bicycle, Stein grabbed it, court documents allege. When another officer stepped in to help his colleague, the bicycle hit him in the forearm, and while the bicycle was raised, Stein kicked him multiple times in the right leg near the groin, according to the complaint.
The officer who tried helping his colleague was later diagnosed with a strain in his left forearm, a contusion in the back of his right leg and a groin injury, the documents said.
The State of Missouri filed charges in March 2025.
Prosecutors say charges aren't a statement on freedom of speech
St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Melissa Price Smith, in a 2025 statement after the charges were filed, said she wants to "make it clear that these misdemeanor criminal charges are not a statement about the freedoms of speech or assembly, which we honor and uphold as part of our Constitution."
"They are not a statement about the subject of the protest, which was the situation in Gaza," Smith's statement said, according to Fox2Now and First Alert 4. "These charges merely reflect our professional judgment that we have the evidence to prove these particular criminal charges beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office on Aug. 18 said it cannot comment on pending litigation.
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@usatodayco.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2024 presidential candidate skips assault case hearing; warrant issued
