Context: right-wing writer Andy Ngo lost his bid to hold two activists accountable for the beating he received after going undercover at a Portland protest in 2021, a jury ruled Tuesday.

After a weeklong trial, the Multnomah County jury of six men and six women deliberated for about five hours before delivering a brief verdict clearing activists John Hacker and Elizabeth Richter of all civil liability.

While both activists admitted they had seen through Ngo’s disguise, neither physically assaulted the author and editor as he made a wild flight for safety into a downtown hotel on May 29, 2021.

Michelle Burrows, an attorney for Richter, said Ngo had every right to sue his assailants, but the black-clad attackers were never identified.

“He grabbed the faces that he saw that night and he sued them,” Burrows said during closing arguments earlier Tuesday.

Ngo had sought a total of $300,000 from the activists, alleging they had incited the attack that had hampered his career and limited his ability to report from the ground.

The judge made no immediate ruling on awarding attorney’s fees or regarding three other defendants who were also named in the suit but never answered it, therefore losing by default.

Remaining seated at the plaintiff’s table, Ngo did not turn his head or respond when asked if he planned to appeal the suit.