California woman charged after Turning Point USA event at UC Davis erupts into chaos
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A California woman has been charged with disrupting a Turning Point USA event held on a college campus earlier this year that went viral when protesters clashed with a conservative speaker.
Joanna Clara Sodke, 22, allegedly attended a protest at the University of California, Davis, event on April 3, which included commentator Brandon Tatum.
Turning Point USA said protesters at Tatum’s “Prove Me Wrong” event destroyed camera equipment, a tent, event signs, upturned tables and assaulted band staff.
IN THE CHAOS OF BLOODY BERKELEY AS PROTESTERS GO CRAZY AT US LANDMARK EVENT
Protesters violently disrupt conservative student event at University of California (Turning Point USA)
The chaos that ensued across the country drew attention, including Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated on a Utah college campus in September.
Sodke is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit riot and one count of battery.
He is scheduled to be arraigned Friday afternoon in Yolo Superior Court, Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig’s office said in a statement.
Sodke graduated from UC Davis in 2024 with a degree in history, The Sacramento Bee reported. Videos of the incident show a group of masked protesters pulling down the TPUSA tent and pushing event organizers.
CHAOS OUTSIDE UC BERKELEY LANDMARK CONFERENCE RESULTS IN MULTIPLE ARRESTS WHILE CONSERVATIVE EVENT RUNNING Smoothly
Protesters violently disrupted the Turning Point USA event held at the University of California, Davis, in April. Authorities said a woman who graduated from the school was charged for her alleged role in the protest. (Turning Point USA)
The charges were announced days after a protester outside a TPUSA event on the UC Berkeley campus. Four Berkeley students were arrested by UC Berkeley police early Monday morning on felony vandalism charges.
The event and one in April reignited debates about free speech on college campuses and attacks on conservative speakers.
Police officers separate two men outside the Turning Point USA event at the University of California, Berkeley, on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2025. (AP)
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“At UC Berkeley, there is no room for violence or attempts to intimidate to inhibit lawful or dispassionate expression,” a statement from UC Berkeley said. The statement was included. “The University is conducting a full investigation and intends to fully cooperate with and assist any federal investigations and the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force to identify the outside agitators responsible for attempting to disrupt last night’s TPUSA event.
