A federal lawsuit stemming from a chaotic protest at the 2023 Eritrean Festival in downtown Tacoma has been voluntarily dismissed, ending a two-year legal fight between festival organizers and the demonstrators they accused of vandalism and assault.

The Eritrean Association in Greater Seattle dropped the case Tuesday, Aug. 18, in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the News Tribune reported. No settlement was reached. Trial had been set for October.

The nonprofit had sued 13 named defendants and listed 150 unidentified protesters in June 2024, calling their conduct at the 49th Annual Eritrean Festival "intentional, malicious, oppressive." None of the named defendants were from Washington state. The lawsuit alleged they arrived by two charter buses, cars and trucks from across the country.

The underlying incident unfolded around 6 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 5, 2023, near the Greater Tacoma Convention Center on Market Street. An estimated 150 to 200 protesters arrived at the festival site. Tacoma police received reports of property destroyed and set on fire along Market Street, according to a police press release from that day. Officers blocked Market Street from 13th Street to 15th Street and remained on scene into the afternoon.

Video footage shared with the News Tribune shows many protesters wore matching sky-blue shirts and held American flags. Some chanted "USA." Security guards appeared overwhelmed, yelling commands but unable to stop the group. Police records noted at least three assault reports and one report of a person brandishing a firearm.

The two sides now offer different readings of the dismissal.

Attorney Eduardo Roy, representing the Eritrean Association, said the nonprofit dropped the case because continued litigation costs would dwarf any potential damages. He stood by the lawsuit's claims.

"Was there vindication? No," Roy said. "Because the judge never made a decision on the merits."

Defense attorney Christopher Stockwell countered that his clients engaged in peaceful protest and that the association "basically abandoned the case." He alleged the nonprofit sought to punish his clients through expensive litigation for being activists and journalists in the Eritrean diaspora. Defendants' legal bills piled into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, Stockwell said.

Stockwell acknowledged "some property damage," including vendor tents slashed and merchandise knocked off tables, but said his clients denied causing any of it. He also argued in court that the association lacked standing to sue for property damages because the vendors were separate from the nonprofit.

The lawsuit had alleged hundreds of thousands of dollars in property damage along Market Street, including claims that protesters were armed with metal poles and sticks, pursued festival-goers, attempted to tamper with food and fire-alarm systems, and prevented attendees from checking into hotels. Those allegations were never adjudicated.

The main lawsuit is now closed, but one thread remains: the Eritrean Association is still seeking to recover legal fees from the defendants in a separate matter pending before the court.