Maison Des Champs: Tower Climbs, Charges, and Sphere Sentencing

Maison Des Champs, the anti-abortion activist known as the “Pro-Life Spider-Man,” is a free-solo climber who has scaled at least eight U.S. skyscrapers since 2021 to raise money for anti-abortion causes, and his February 2024 climb of the Las Vegas Sphere produced his most serious punishment yet: 45 days in jail and $77,270.32 in restitution.¹

Who He Is and Why He Climbs

Des Champs is originally from Michigan and was a student at the University of Nevada Las Vegas when he started climbing high-rises in 2021.² He has said he considers abortion “morally wrong” regardless of what any court or legislature decides, and he describes his climbing as part of an “outlaw tradition” of acting on conviction without asking permission.³

Most of his climbs raise money for Let Them Live, an anti-abortion charity that provides housing, transportation, and pregnancy counseling to women considering abortion.⁴ Individual climbs are often attached to a specific beneficiary. The Sphere climb, for example, was tied to a pregnant woman who had reportedly scheduled an abortion because she faced homelessness; according to the Thomas More Society, the effort raised enough to keep her housed and the child was carried to term.⁵ Des Champs has said he is “at peace” with being arrested if it advances his cause.³

His method is consistent. He arrives with rock-climbing shoes and chalk, goes up the exterior without ropes or a harness, and livestreams or posts video as he climbs.

The Climbs and Their Charges

Aria Hotel, Las Vegas (2021)

His first documented climb. He was charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct and trespassing, and prosecutors later dismissed the case.⁶

Salesforce Tower, San Francisco (May 3, 2022)

Des Champs climbed the 1,070-foot Salesforce Tower, the tallest building in San Francisco, starting around 9 a.m. and stopping periodically to post video. Police arrested him at the top and charged him with two misdemeanors, trespassing and resisting a police investigation, because he refused to stop climbing when ordered. He was cited and released the same afternoon.²

New York Times Building, Manhattan (May 5, 2022)

Two days later he scaled the New York Times Building and hung two banners, one reading “Abortion kills more than 9/11 every week!” and another depicting a fetus.⁷ Police were not waiting when he came down. He ran 52 flights of stairs in his climbing shoes and left through an emergency exit, and police could not confirm an arrest by that afternoon.³

Renaissance Center, Detroit (May 8, 2022)

On Mother’s Day 2022 he climbed Detroit’s Renaissance Center. He was ticketed for disorderly conduct and released about five hours later.⁸

Devon Tower, Oklahoma City (June 14, 2022)

Des Champs went up all 50 stories of Oklahoma’s tallest building in about an hour. The disorderly conduct charge was dropped, leaving a trespassing complaint carrying a fine of up to $250. Bail was set at $500 and he was released from the Oklahoma County Detention Center shortly after.⁹

Chase Tower, Phoenix (February 7, 2023)

On the eve of Super Bowl LVII, Des Champs climbed the 40-story Chase Tower in downtown Phoenix while supporters from Let Them Live and Pro-Life San Francisco held a prayer vigil at the base.⁴ He was charged with third-degree trespassing and criminal nuisance, both Class 3 misdemeanors. In June 2024 he pleaded no contest. A judge sentenced him to 30 days in jail with 23 suspended, so he served seven days, plus one year of probation, a $939 fine, and $1,370.90 in jail fees. As a condition of probation, he was barred from climbing any building or structure anywhere in the world without the property owner’s permission.¹⁰

Accenture Tower, Chicago (October 2023)

Des Champs began climbing the roughly 588-foot Accenture Tower around 9:45 a.m. Chicago fire and police responded, streets were blocked for about an hour, and a SWAT team entered the building, shut down the elevators and escalators, and arrested him at the top. Police described the event as a “publicity stunt.” Charges and their resolution were not detailed in available reporting.¹¹

The Sphere, Las Vegas (February 7, 2024)

Des Champs scaled the 366-foot Sphere on the Las Vegas Strip, livestreaming as he went. Sphere Entertainment Company reported the climb caused roughly $100,000 in damage to equipment on the building’s exterior.¹² He was initially charged with destroying property of another, a felony, along with a gross misdemeanor count of conspiracy to destroy private property.⁶

The Sphere Sentencing

In October 2025, Des Champs pleaded guilty to a single gross misdemeanor charge of “performance of an act or neglect of duty in willful or wanton disregard of the safety of persons or property,” resolving the more serious original charges.¹²

On April 20, 2026, Clark County District Court Judge Danielle Pieper sentenced him to 364 days in jail with all but 45 days suspended, along with one year of probation. The judge warned that any probation violation would trigger the remainder of the year in custody. She also ordered $77,270.32 in restitution to Sphere Entertainment Company, plus additional court fees.¹

The Thomas More Society, the conservative legal group representing Des Champs, has disputed the restitution order. Special Counsel Sean Sullivan said Des Champs “did not cause” the $77,000 in damages and was “denied a proper trial on that issue,” and that the firm is evaluating its options. No formal appeal has been announced.⁵

As of spring 2026, Des Champs was serving the 45-day term, with an expected release date on or around June 4, 2026.¹³

The Legal Pattern

Across at least eight documented climbs, Des Champs was arrested repeatedly but for a long stretch faced only minor consequences. The Aria Hotel case was dismissed. The Devon Tower case involved a low-level trespassing complaint. Phoenix produced seven days in jail and a year of probation with a worldwide climbing ban. For several climbs, charges were either not reported or not pursued. The Sphere case is the first that produced a substantial jail term and a significant financial penalty, and it did so despite ending in a gross misdemeanor plea rather than the initial felony.

Reactions

Reactions have split along predictable lines. Supporters at the base of the Chase Tower cheered and prayed, with one telling reporters, “He’s literally climbing for life. He’s willing to do something radical so that that child can live.”⁴ Emergency officials have been direct. Phoenix Fire Department Captain Todd Keller said simply, “Don’t do it,” noting the stunts endanger both climber and responders. A spokesperson for The New York Times called the banner-hanging climb “unlawful and dangerous” while noting the paper supports the right to express a viewpoint.⁷ No major pro-choice organization has issued a public statement specifically addressing his tactics in available reporting.

1
Fox 5 Vegas. Las Vegas Sphere Climber Gets Jail Time, Restitution
2
ABC7 News. Man Climbing Salesforce Tower Identified as Pro-Life Spiderman
3
NPR. Pro-Life Spiderman Abortion Climber
4
The State Press. Arizona Chase Tower Anti-Abortion Climber
5
Thomas More Society. Thomas More Society Responds to Sentencing of Pro-Life Spiderman Maison DesChamps
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NBC DFW. Protester Scaling Las Vegas Sphere
7
New York Post. Pro-Life Spider-Man Hangs Abortion Banners on NY Times Building
8
Fox 2 Detroit. Pro-Life Spiderman Climbs Detroit’s Renaissance Center
9
KOCO. Oklahoma City Abortion Activist Climbs Devon Tower
10
Arizona Republic. Man Who Climbed Chase Tower Shut Down Traffic, Served 7 Days in Jail
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USA Today. Anti-Abortion Activist Climbs Accenture Tower Chicago
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8 News Now. Las Vegas Sphere Climber Sentenced to Jail, Ordered to Pay Restitution for Damage
13
Fox News. Pro-Life Spiderman Sentenced for Climbing Las Vegas Sphere