In December 2024, Yeshitela, Penny Hess, and Jesse Nevel — the Uhuru 3, as they are known — were acquitted of charges that they had acted as agents of a foreign power, in this case Russia, and interfered in elections. However, the jury found them guilty of conspiracy to act as agents of a foreign power.Twisting political opinion and protest activities into an alleged conspiracy is the same method the federal government is using against those speaking out against genocide in Palestine and raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in order to quell dissent. And it is the same argument that Washington has most recently outlined in a July 27, 2026, state department document, Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism, targeting those who oppose the U.S. blockade of the island nation. The following is a report on hearings held July 22, 2026, to overturn the conviction.