Those who attacked their own nation’s Capitol failed to consider the consequences of doing so. This is part 5.
On January 6, 2021, a mob of Donald Trump supporters staged an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building. The Guardian reported that people stormed the chambers of the House and Senate while the Electoral College votes were being tallied.
January 13, 2022: Department of Justice U.S. Department of Affairs – U.S. Department of Justice posted a press release titled: “Leader of Oath Keepers and 10 Other Individuals Indicted In Federal Court for Seditious Conspiracy and Other Offenses Related to U.S. Capitol Breach.”
Eight Others Facing Charges In Two Related Cases
A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returned an indictment yesterday, which was unsealed today, charging 11 defendants with seditious conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, which disturbed a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the presidential election.
According to court documents, Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, 56, of Granbury, Texas, who is the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers; and Edward Vallejo, 63, of Phoenix, Arizona, are being charged for the first time in connection with events leading up to and including Jan. 6. Rhodes was arrested this morning in Little Elm, Texas, and Vallejo was arrested this morning in Phoenix.
In addition to Rhodes and Vallejo, those named in the indictment include nine previously charged defendants: Thomas Caldwell, 67, of Berryville, Virginia; Joseph Hackett, 51, of Sarasota, Florida; Kenneth Harrelson, 41, of Titusville, Florida; Joshua James, 34, of Arab, Alabama; Kelly Meggs, 52, of Dunnellon, Florida; Roberto Minuta, 37, of Prosper, Texas; David Moerschel, 44, of Punta Gorda, Florida; Brian Ulrich, 44, of Guyton Georgia an Jessica Watkins, 39, of Woodstock, Ohio.
In addition to earlier charges filed against them, they now face additional counts for seditious conspiracy and other offenses.
Eight other individuals affiliated with the Oath Keepers, all previously charged in the investigation, remain as defendants in two related cases. The superseding indictment has now effectively been split into three parts: the 11-defendant seditious conspiracy case, a seven-defendant original case, and a third case against one of the previously charged defendants.
In one of the related cases, the original superseding indictment, charges remain pending against James Beeks, 49, of Orlando, Florida; Donovan Crowl, 51, of Cable, Ohio; William Issacs, 22, of Kissimmee, Florida; Connie Meggs, 60, of Dunnellon, Florida; and Laura Steele, 53, of Thomasville, North Carolina. The other case charges Jonathan Walden, 57, of Birmingham, Alabama.
The three indictments collectively charge all 19 defendants with corruptly obstructing an official proceeding. Eighteen of the 19 defendants — the exception is Walden — are charged with seditious conspiracy. Some of the defendants are also facing other related charges.
As alleged in the indictments, the Oath Keepers are a large body but loosely organized collection of individuals, some of whom are associated with militias. Though the Oath Keepers will accept anyone as members, they explicitly focus on recruiting current and former military, law enforcement, and first-responder personnel. Members and affiliates of the Oath Keepers were among the individuals and groups who forcibly entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The seditious conspiracy indictment alleges that, following the Nov. 3, 2020, presidential election, Rhodes conspired with his co-defendants and others to oppose by force the execution of the laws governing the transfer of presidential power by Jan. 20, 2021.
Beginning in late December 2020, via encrypted and private communications applications, Rhodes and various co-conspirators coordinated and planned to travel to Washington, D.C., on or around Jan. 6, 2021, the date of the certification of the electoral college vote, the indictment alleges. Rhodes and several co-conspirators made plans to bring weapons to the area to support the operation. The co-conspirators then traveled across the country to Washington. D.C., metropolitan area in early January 2021.
According to the seditious conspiracy indictment, the defendants conspired through a variety of manners and means, including: organizing into teams that were prepared and willing to use force and to transport firearms and ammunition into Washington D.C.; recruiting members and affiliates to participate in the conspiracy; organizing trainings to teach and learn paramilitary combat tactics; bringing and contributing paramilitary gear, weapons and supplies — including knives, batons, camouflaged combat uniforms, tactical vests with plates, helmets, eye protection and radio equipment — to the Capitol grounds; breaching and attempting to take control of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021; continuing to plot, after Jan. 6, 2021, to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power, and using websites, social media, text messaging and encrypted messaging applications to communicate with co-conspirators and others.
On Jan. 6, 2021, a large crowd began to gather outside the Capitol perimeter as the Joint Session of Congress got underway at 1 p.m. Crowd members eventually forced their way through, up and over U.S. Capitol Police barricades and advanced to the building’s exterior façade.
Shortly after 2 p.m., crowd members forced entry into the Capitol by breaking windows, ramming open doors, and assaulting Capitol police and other law enforcement officers. At about this time, according to the indictment, Rhodes entered the restricted area of the Capitol grounds and directed his followers to meet him at the Capitol.
At approximately 2:30 p.m., as detailed in the indictment, Hackett, Harrelson, Meggs, Moerschel and Watkins, and other Oath Keepers and affiliates — many wearing paramilitary clothing and patches with the Oath Keepers name, logo, and insignia — marched in a “stack” formation up the east steps of the Capitol, joined a mob, and made their way into the Capitol.
Later, another group of Oath Keepers and associates, including James, Minuta, and Ulrich, formed a second “stack” and breached the Capitol grounds, marching from the west side to the east side of the Capitol building and up the east stairs and into the building.
While certain Oath Keepers members and affiliates breached the Capitol grounds and building, others remained stationed just outside of the city in quick reaction force (QRF) teams. According to the indictment, the QRF teams were prepared to rapidly transport firearms and other weapons into Washington, D.C., in support of operations aimed at using force to stop the lawful transfer of presidential power. The indictment alleges that the teams were coordinated, in part, by Caldwell and Vallejo.
The charge of conspiracy carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Northern District of Texas and the District of Arizona.
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office with valuable assistance provided by the FBI’s Dallas and Phoenix Field Offices. These charts are the result of significant cooperation between agents and staff across numerous FBI Field Offices, including those in Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Arizona, Alabama, and Georgia, among other locations.
In the one year since Jan. 6, more than 725 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 225 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains on going.
January 23, 2023: Office of Public Affairs U.S. Department of Justice posted a press release: “Four Oath Keepers Found Guilty of Seditious Conspiracy Related to U.S. Capitol Breach”
Defendants Also Convicted of Related Felony Charges
Four members of the Oath Keepers were found guilty today by a jury in the District of Columbia of seditious conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Their actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the presidential election.
According to the evidence at trial, in the months leading up to January 6, these defendants and their co-conspirators plotted to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power., including by amassing an armed “quick reaction force” on the outskirts of the District of Columbia.
The defendants, Roberto Minuta, 38, of Prosper Texas; Joseph Hackett, 52, of Sarasota Florida; David Moerschel, 45, of Punta Gorda, Florida; and Edward Vallejo, 64, of Phoenix, Arizona, — were leaders and associates of the Oath Keepers organization.
In addition to the seditious conspiracy count, all four were found guilty of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy to prevent Members of Congress from discharging their official duties. Hackett was also found guilty of destruction of evidence.
“Today, the Justice Department secured the conviction of four members of the Oath Keepers for their criminal conduct surrounding the Jan. 6. 2021 attack on the Capitol,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “A jury found all four defendants guilty of seditious conspiracy, as well as conspiracies to obstruct the certification of the electoral college vote and to prevent members of Congress from discharging their duties. I am grateful to the prosecutors, agents, and staff for their excellent work on this case.”
“Today’s verdict is an important step in our continued efforts to hold criminally accountable those involved in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “We will continue to investigate those who sought to undermine the workings of American democracy and we will work closely with federal prosecutors to ensure justice is served.”
“For the second time in recent months, a jury has found that a group of Americans entered into a seditious conspiracy against the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves for the District of Columbia. “The goal of this conspiracy was to prevent the execution of our laws that govern the peaceful transfer of power — striking at the very heart of our democracy. We are grateful to the thoughtful, deliberative work of this jury who gave weeks of their lives to carefully consider and deliver justice in this case and in doing so reaffirmed our democratic principles.”
Today’s verdict follows the November 29, 2022, seditious conspiracy conviction of Elmer Steward Rhodes III and Kelly Meggs — two leaders of the Oath Keepers. Jessica Watkins, Kenneth Harrelson and Thomas Caldwell were also convicted of related felony charges in that first trial. All nine defendants were indicted as part of the same conspiracy on Jan. 12, 2022.
Seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct Congress, obstruction of Congress, and destruction of evidence all carry a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. All charges cary potential financial penalties. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. U.S. District Court Judge Amir Mehta will schedule sentencing hearings at a later date.
According to the government’s evidence, following the Nov. 3, 2020, presidential election, the defendants conspired together and with others to oppose by force the execution of the laws governing the transfer of presidential power by Jan. 20, 2021.
Beginning in late December 2020, via encrypted and private communications applications, the defendants and various co-conspirators coordinated and planned to travel to Washington, D.C., on or around Jan. 6, 2021, the date of the certification pf tej electoral college vote.
The defendants made plans to bring weapons to the area to support the operation. The co-conspirators then traveled across the country to the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area in early January 2021, with paramilitary gear and supplies including firearms, tactical vests with plates, helmets, and radio equipment.
The defendants conspired through a variety of manners and means, including: organizing into teams that were prepared and willing to use force and to transport firearms and ammunition into Washington, D.C.; recruiting members and affiliates to participate in the conspiracy, organizing training to teach and learn paramilitary combat tactics; bringing and contributing paramilitary gear, weapons, and supplies — including knives, camouflaged combat uniforms, tactical vests with plates, helmets, eye protection, and radio equipment — to the Capitol grounds; breaching and attempting to take control of the Capitol grounds and building on Jan. 6, 2021; continuing to plot, after Jan 6, 2021, to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power; and using websites, social media, text messaging and encrypted messaging application to communicate with co-conspirator and others.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice’s National Security Division and Criminal Division. Valuable assistance was provided by numerous U.S. Attorney’s Office across the country.
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, as well as the Metropolitan Police Department, with significant assistance provided by the FBI’s New York, Dallas, Tampa and Phoenix Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the U.S. Secret Service.
In the 24 months since Jan. 6. 2021, more than 950 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including 284 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.
June 28, 2024: NPR reported “Supreme Court says prosecutors improperly charged some Jan. 6 defendants” It was written by Nina Totenberg.
The U.S. Supreme Court limited which defendants accused of taking part in the Jan. 6. Capitol riot can be charged by federal prosecutors for obstructing Congress. The court’s decision also places at least a cloud of doubt about two of the four felony counts in the election subversion indictment of President Trump.
In an opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, the court ruled that the government must establish “that the defendant impaired the availability or integrity for use in an official proceeding of records, documents, objects, or other things used in a official proceeding.”
Prosecutors used a key criminal statute to prosecute more than 350 of the most violent participants in the riot.
The stature had two parts. The first part makes is a crime to corruptly alter or Destry documents and records related to an official proceeding. The second part makes it a crime to otherwise obstruct or impede an official proceeding — in this case, the congressional counting of electoral college ballots.
Roberts said the statute was limited to documents and evidence destruction, and that the word otherwise was not meant to broaden the meaning of the law into a catchall provision.
Writing for the court majority, Robert said the statute was limited to documents and evidence destruction, and that the word otherwise was not meant otherwise broaden the meaning of the law as a catchall provision.
In a concurring opinion, liberal justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote: Despite “the shocking circumstances involved in this case,” the “Court’s task is to determine what conduct is proscribe by the criminal statue that has been involved as the base for the obstruction charge at issue here.”
Justices Amy Coney Barrett joined Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan in dissent.
Justice Barrett — a Trump appointee — joined wrote that the provision in question “is a very broad provision, and admittedly, events like January 6th were not its target. (Who could blame Congress for that failure of imagination?) But statutes often go further than the problem that inspired them, and under the rules of statutory interpretation, we stick to the text anyway. The Court, abandoning that approach, does textual backflips to find some way — any way — to narrow” it.
The case was brought by Joseph Fischer, a former police officer in a township near Harrisburg, Pa., who joined the mob on Jan. 6th, even recording a four-minute cell phone video in which he is heard yelling, “charge,” and is seen in a scrum with police officers.
According to prosecutors, Fischer, in text messages, also threatened violence prior to Jan. 6, including sending a text in which he wrote, “take Democratic Congress to the gallows … can’t vote if they can’t breathe lol.” And when the FBI came to arrest him later, he shouted profanities at the agents and at his own police chief, and he sought to conceal the phone he had used to record events at the Capitol.
The Justice Department maintained that it limited the use of the statute at issue in the case by requiring proof that Fischer and other similarly charged defendants had specifically intended to disrupt the counting of the electoral college ballots and by focusing on elements like a defendant’s preparation for violence, and bringing tactical gear or paramilitary equipment to the Capitol.
At an oral argument Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the justices that prosecutors have brought charges against some 1400 defendants in connection with the riot, but that only 350 of those had been charged under the obstruction statute because of the need to move intent to disrupt the counting of the ballots.
Defendant Fischer’s lawyer, Jeffrey Green, maintained that the reason the government chose to use the statute at all was that it has a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Even though nobody has actually gotten such a stiff penalty, he said, for prosecutors it is “a really big cudgel” to use in plea bargaining with defendants.
Friday’s decision has already had consequences. Pending the outcome of Friday’s case, some judges previously allowed a small number of convicted defendants to be released from prison early. Now, a larger number will have to be repentances, retried, or just released.
But while Friday’s decision might intuitively be seen as a devastating blow to prosectors, a deep dive into the data concludes the effects will be “minimal.” NYU law professor Ryan Goodman is the lead author of the study, published by “Just Security,” which relied on NPR’s detailed data base of Jan 6 Capitol riot cases.
Goodman notes that Trump is different from the Capitol rioters because the obstruction charges against him involve efforts to interfere with the electoral college certificate arriving at the desk to be counted on Jan. 6th, and the use of false elector certificates — all of which would seem to fall under the tampering-with-evidence provision of the obstruction statute.
As for the Jan. 6 rioters, the study found that of the 1417 people charged so far in connection with the Jan. 6 invasion, only 346, or 24 per cent, were charged under the obstruction statute. Of that 346, 128 defendants were convicted by a jury of obstruction and another crime, most often another felony, which would still stand.
A different cohort of 48 people pleaded guilty to the obstruction charge, which now goes away. But hovering over all of this pleas is the fact that the plea agreement uniformly included an important caveat: In the event that the conviction were to be “vacated for any reason,” the government reserved the right to prosecute for other alleged crimes that prosecutors had either agreed not to prosecute or agreed to dismiss at sentencing.
Finally the study, found that until Friday, 71 people were still awaiting trial on the obstruction charge, but more than half are also charged with another felony. While those felonies may not have penalties a severe as the obstruction charge, if the defendants are found guilty of those other crimes, the sentencing judge is permitted to consider the conduct charged in the obstruction case in determine the length of the sentence.
The study’s authors, in addition to professor Goodman, are Georgetown law professor Mary McCord, a long-time federal prosecutor who held a variety of top Justice Department jobs, including chief of the criminal division and acting assistant attorney general for national security; and NYU law professor Andrew Weissmann, also a long-time Justice Department prosecutor, who served as chief of the fraud section, counsel for the FBI, and lead prosecutor in the Muller investigation of then President Trump.
Of course Donald Trump, if re-elected, could pardon all the Jan. 6 defendants. He has not committed to doing that yet, though he often refers to Jan. 6 offenders as “hostages” and “patriots.” In his first term he pardoned friends and political allies who were a lot more prominent, including former campaign chiefs Paul Manafort, convicted on corruption charges, and Stephen Bannon, indicted on fraud charges for a build-the-wall fundraising scheme in which he allegedly pocked $1 million.
In addition Trump pardoned his close friend and advisor Roger Stone, indicted on charges of witness tampering, obstruction, and lying to Congress about what he and then-candidate Trump knew about Russian efforts to discredit Hillary Clinton in terms of 2016 presidential campaign; he pardoned former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, who pleaded guilty to tax fraud and lying to White House officials; He pardoned Charles Kushner, the father of Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner; the elder Kushner pleaded guilty to 18 criminal counts of tax evasion, witness tampering, and making illegal campaign contributions; and Trump also pardoned his former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, who twice pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and then withdrew his guilty pleas.
June 28, 2024: The Associated Press reported: “Supreme Court makes it harder to charge Capitol riot defendants with obstruction, charge Trump faces” It was written by Mark Sherman.
The Supreme Court on Friday limited a federal obstruction law that has been used to change hundreds of Capitol riot defenders as well as former President Trump.
The justices ruled 6-3 that the charge of obstructing an official proceeding, enacted in 2002 in response to the financial scandal that brought down Enron Corp., must include proof that defendants tried to tamper with or destroy documents. Only some of the people who violently attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, fall into that category.
The overwhelming majority of the approximately 1,000 people who have been convicted of or pleaded guilty to Capitol riot-related federal crimes were not charged with obstruction and will not be affected by the outcome.
Still, the decision is likely to be used as fodder for clam by Trump and his Republican allies that the Justice Department has treated the Capitol riot defendants unfairly.
It is unclear how the court’s decision will affect the case against Trump in Washington, which includes charges other than obstruction. Special counsel Jack Smith has said the charges faced by the former president would not be affected.
Trump’s case is on hold while the Supreme Court considers a separate case in which Trump is claiming immunity from prosecution. A decision is expected on Monday.
Under the ruling issued Friday, dozens of defendants could seek new sentences, ask to withdraw guilty pleas, or have charges dropped. Most defendants convicted of obstruction were also convicted of another felony so their sentence may not be significantly impacted — if at all.
The high court returned the case of former Pennsylvania police office Joseph Fischer to a lower court to determine if Fischer could be charged with obstruction. Fischer has been indicted for his role in disrupting Congress’ certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory over Trump.
Fischer is among about 350 people who have been charged with obstruction. Some pleaded guilty to — or were convicted of — lesser charges.
Republicans, who have cast the Jan. 6 defendants as victims of political persecution, are certain to seize on the ruling to argue the rioters have been unfairly prosecuted by the Justice Department. Trump has embraced Jan. 6 defendants on the campaign trail, and floated pardons for the rioters if he wins in November.
Trump, speaking at a rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, described the decision as a “great thing.”
“Free the J6 hostages now,” he said. “They should free them now for what they’ve gone through. They;e been waiting for this decision for a long time. They’ve been waiting for a long time. And that was a great answer. That is a great thing for people that have been so horribly treated.”
It’s also likely to slow down cases in a court already clogged with Jan. 6 defendants as judges are forced to grapple with how to apply the ruling.
“It’s going to be a big mess,” said Randall Eliason, a professor at George Washington University Law School and former federal prosecutor in Washington.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the court’s opinion, joined by conservative Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Clarance Thomas, and by liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, a former federal defender who also wrote a separate opinion.
Reading the obstruction statue broadly “would also criminalize a broad swath of prosaic conduct, exposing activists and lobbyists to decades in prison,” Roberts wrote.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett dissented, along with Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.
Barrett, one of the three justices appointed by Trump, wrote that the law clearly encompasses the events of Jan. 6. “The riot forced Congress to suspend the proceeding, delaying it for several hours,” she wrote.
She said her colleagues in the majority did “textual backflips to find some way — any way – to narrow the reach” of the obstruction law.
Roberts, Jackson, and Barrett made strikingly different word choices in their opinions. While Roberts described the attack as a “breach of the Capitol,” Barrett described the events as a riot and the participants as rioters. Jackson wrote that “an angry mob stormed the United States Capitol.”
Attorney General Merrick Garland said he was disappointed with the decision, which he said “limits an important federal statute,” Still, Garland said the cases against the “vast majority” of people charged in the attack won’t be affected.
“January 6 was an unprecedented attack on the cornerstone of our system of government — the peaceful transfer of power from one administration to the next,” he said. “We will continue to use all available tools to hold accountable those criminally responsible for the January 6 attack on our democracy.”
Roughly 170 Capitol Insurrection defendants have been convicted of obstructing or conspiring to obstruct the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress, including the leaders of two far-right extremist groups, the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers. A number of defendants have had their sentencings delayed until after the justice rule on the matter.
Some rioter have even won early release from prison while the appeal was pending over concerns that they might end up serving longer than they should have if the Supreme Court ruled against the Justice Department.
They include Kevin Seefried, a Delaware man who threatened a Black police officer with a pole attached to a Confederate battle flag as he stormed the Capitol. Seefried was sentences last year to three years behind bars, but a judge recently ordered that he be released one year into his prison term while awaiting the Supreme Courts ruling.
Seventeen of the 18 trial judges who have weighted in have allowed the charge to stand. Among them, U.S. District Judge Dabney Frederich, a Trump appointee, wrote that “statutes often reach beyond the principal evil that animated them.”
But U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, another Trump appointed, dismissed the charge against Fischer and two other defendants, writing that prosecutors went too far. A divided panel of the federal appeals court in Washington reinstate d the charge before the Supreme Court agreed to take up the case.
Alito and Thomas rejected calls that they step aside from the Jan. 6 case because of questions raised about their impartiality.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, which has handled Jan. 6 prosecutions, said on one who has been convicted of or charged with obstruction will be completely cleared because of the ruing. Every defendant also has another felony or misdemeanor charges, or both, prosecutors said.
For around 50 people who were convicted, obstruction was the only felony count, prosecutors said. Of those roughly two dozen who are still serving their sentence are most likely to be affected by the ruling.
More than 1,400 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes.
February 4, 2021: HuffPost posted “Feds Drop The Hammer On The Capitol Insurrectionists” It was written by Ryan J. Reilly.
The insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol last month largely escaped arrest after overwhelming an underprepared police force. When the feds eventually tracked some of them down — starting with those who openly bragged about their conduct on social media — most initially faced low-level misdemeanor charges.
But now, after prosecutors presented their cases to a federal jury, many insurrectionists have been charged with much more serious offenses: felonies that come with the potential of significant time in federal prison.
In addition to criminal complaints, the government has secured federal grand jury indictments against a number of defendants, including conspiracy cases against defendants who allegedly worked together during the attack on the Capitol. A number of U.S. Capitol attack defendants have been indicted on serious charges — nearly a dozen on Wednesday alone.
As the indictments come back, it appears as though felony charge are going to be the norm for many defendants. Their online bragging, disclosures during FBI interviews and searches of their property after arrests are giving prosecutors what they need to secure felony indictments.
One common charge is obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting, in violation of Section 1512(c) of the U.S. Code. While 1512 is better known for its witness-tampering provisions, part of the law outlaws corruptly obstructing, influencing or impeding an official proceeding. The official proceeding in question here is the certification of the Electoral College votes on Jan. 6.
Take the case of the “selfie cops” who used to be employed as law enforcement officers in Virginia. Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson were originally only facing two counts. But a federal grand jury indicted them on four counts on Friday, including a felony charge of obstructing a federal proceeding and aiding and abetting others in impeding a proceeding before Congress “by entering and remaining in the United State’s Capitol without authority and participating in disruptive behavior.”
Jenny Cudd, a florist from Texas, bragged on social media about how rioters broke down House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) office door and “charged the Capitol.” Cudd said she was proud of her actions. This week — amid a raging coronavirus pandemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans — she requested permission to take a vacation to Mexico. Because she was only facing misdemeanor charges, a court might have granted such a motion.
But a federal grand jury indicted Cudd on five charges on Wednesday, including the obstruction an official proceeding charge. Now that she’s been indicted on a felony, that Mexico vacation is less likely.
Gina Bisignano, a California woman who stormed the Capitol wearing a Louis Vitton sweater and was caught on video egging on the crowd with a bullhorn, was indicted on seven counts, including the obstructing an official proceeding charge. Grand jurors also added a civil disorder charge against Bisignano under a rarely used law first passed in the 1960s that the Trump administration more recently deployed during protests over the killing of George Floyd.
Patrick McCaughey III, caught on video battling police officers struggling to keep the pro-Trump mob from storming the Capitol, was indicted on nine counts, including a charge of assaulting, resisting or impeding an officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon.
Richard Barnett, photographed with his feet up on a desk in Nancy Pelosi’s office and bragging about stealing property from her office, was indicted on seven counts, including the felony obstruction of an official proceeding charge.
Stephanie Hazelton, the South Jersey right-wing activist known as “Ayla Wolf,” was indicted on six counts, including felonies for civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding.
Edward Jacob Lang was indicted on 11 counts, including felonies for civil disorder, assaulting officers and obstruction of an official proceeding.
Melony Steel-Smith, who bragged that she “stormed the castle” on Facebook and posted images from inside Pelosi’s office, was indicted on five counts, including the felony count of obstructing an official proceeding.
Josiah Colt, an Idaho man who rappelled into the chamber of the Senate — which the incorrectly believed was the House chamber — was indicted on four counts, including the felony obstruction of an official proceeding charge.
The FBI recently launched an upgraded portal featuring images of 200 suspects wanted in connection with the Capitol attack, and the agency is continuing to bring new cases. Ins several Capitol cases, prosecutors have filed “information” against a defendant, which typically indicates that a defendant waived their right to an indictment and plans to seek a plea deal, but may also just mean that prosecutors do not intend to seek any felony charges.
Samuel Camarago, who bragged online that he “got some memorabilia, did it myself” with an image of a piece of metal he apparently stole during the Capitol siege, was pretty confident with how things went when he gave the FBI an interview after the Capitol insurrection.
“Just finished speaking to an FBI agent, I believed I’ve been cleared,” Camargo wrote on Facebook.
Court records posted Thursday indicated that Caramargo was indicted.
April 14, 2023: The Associated Press reported: “Capitol rioter who crushed officer with shield gets 7 years” It was written by Michael Kunzelman.
A man who used a stolen riot shield to crush a police officer in a doorframe during the U.S. Capitol insurrection was sentenced on Friday to more than seven years in prison for his role in one of the most violent episodes of the Jan. 6 attack.
Federal prosecutors had recommended a prison sentence of 15 years and eight months for Patrick McCaughey III, which would have been the longest sentence for a Capitol riot case by more than five years.
U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden sentenced McCaughey to seven years and six months in prison followed by two years of supervised release. The judge described McCaughey, 25, as a “poster child of all that was dangerous and appalling about” the Jan. 6, 2021 riot.
“Your actions are some of the most egregious crimes that were committed on that dark day,” the judge told McCaughey.
McCaughey of Ridgefield, Connecticut, expressed shame for joining the mob of then-President Donald Trump’s supporters who “violated” the Capitol.
“I am sorry that I conducted myself less like a citizen and more like an animal that day,” he said.
McCaughey’s 90-month sentence matches the second longest prison sentence so far for a Capitol riot defendant. It’s the same length as the sentence that another judge handed down to Albuquerque Cosper Head, a Tennessee man who dragged Metropolitan Police Department Officer Michael Fanone into a crowd of rioters.
April 14, 2023: Law & Crime posted: “Man who used stolen riot shield to crush police officer in Capital doorway on Jan. 6. gets years behind bars”
One of the men accused in the brutal attack of a Washington, D.C. police officer who was seen being crushed by the riotous mob at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 has been sentenced to years behind bars.
Patrick E. McCaughey III, 25, of Ridgefield, Connecticut, was sentenced to 90 months in prison for nine offenses, the Justice Department announced in a press release Friday.
“McCaughey was convicted of seven felony charges: three counts of aiding or abetting or assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers, including one involving a dangerous weapon; one count of obstruction of an official proceeding; one count of disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon, and one count of engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon,” the press release said.
He was also convicted of two disorderly conduct misdemeanors.
According to prosecutors, McCaughey and his co-defendants, Tristan Chandler Stevens and David Mehaffie had traveled from there homes to Washington D.C., to support then-President Donald Trump, who had spent months falsely stating that the 2020 presidential election was tainted by fraud. As Congress had begun to certify Joe Biden’s electoral win, pro-Trump rioters broke into the Capitol building, forcing lawmakers to either flee the building or shelter in place for hours.
McCaughey, Stevens, and Mehaffie “ultimately broke through the police line after approximately 2:30 p.m., when the line on the West Front failed under siege of the advancing mob,” the DOJ said. They scaled the scaffolding and staircase on the southwest part of the Capitol and converged at the tunnel on the Lower West Terrace, guarded by U.S. Capitol Police Officers and officers from the Metropolitan Police Department.
“Between 2:41 p.m. and 3:19 p.m., the three defendants attempted to break into the building by directing other rioters, participating in heave-hos against the police line, using riot shields stolen from the Capitol Police, and assaulting three specific officers,” The DOJ said.
“Mehaffie hung from an archway and shouted directions from above, and McCaughey and Stevens were key players in the melee below. McCaughey grabbed a riot shield and used it as a weapon.”
Specifically, McCaughey used that stolen riot shield as a weapon against MPD Officer Daniel Hodges, whose struggle against rioters crushing him in a door has become one of the most memorable images to emerge from the riot.
“McCaughey made his way to the front of the mob, where he came face to face with MPD Officer Daniel Hodges,” the government said in its sentencing memorandum. “McCaughey used his riot shield to crush Officer Hodges into the metal doorframe, while yelling at the officer to ‘go home.”
Hodges had testified at trial that he was worried he would lose consciousness. At one point, rioters had ripped Hodges’ gas mask from his face and stole his baton, using it to strike his head.
McCaughey, Stevens, and Mehaffie were convicted in September 2022 after a bench trial before U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, a Trump appointee and the first judge to issue acquittals for misdemeanors in the Jan. 6 prosecutions. Stevens and Mehaffie are awaiting sentencing.
McCaughey’s sentence is about half the 15 years requested by prosecutors. He had argues for a sentence of one year. McFadden ordered him to serve three years of supervised release and pay $2,000 in restitution toward the estimated $2.9 million in damage and loss to the Capitol resulting from the riot.
At the sentencing hearing, McFadden told McCaughey that he believed he had lied on the stand, according to a report from local CBS affiliate WUSA9.
“Your actions on Jan 6, and in particular your attack on Officer Hodges, made you a poser child for all that was dangerous and appalling about that day,” McFadden reportedly said.
McCaughey was convicted of three separate counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding police, including an enhanced felony charge for using a deadly or dangerous weapon. He was the only defendant not already in pre-trial detention who McFadden “stepped back” — or ordered immediately into custody — following his conviction.
While delivering his verdict, McFadden described in detail the harrowing moment when McCaughey used a riot shield and the force of the mob behind him to pin Hodges in a doorframe while he screamed for help.
McFatten had allowed McCaughey to stay out of custody before sentencing but reportedly ordered him to be reprimanded immediately.
April 14, 2023: WUSA9 reported: ‘Selfless’ Connecticut man who crushed officer in doorframe sentenced to 7.5 years in prison.”
A Connecticut man who crushed a D.C. police officer in a doorframe on Jan. 6, was sentenced Friday to more than seven years in prison — one of the longest sentences to date in a Capitol riot case.
Patrick McCaughey III, who was convicted in a September bench trial of seven felonies and two misdemeanors, was ordered to serve 90 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release, by U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden. McCaughey had faces a recommended sentencing guideline of 151-188 months in prison and prosecutors asked him to receive 15 years behind bars. His attorney, Dennis Boyle, requested a significant downward variance to just one year in prison.
McFadden, a former police officer and 2017 nominee of former President Donald Trump, and already sentenced a number of McCaughey’s co-defendants — and he told McCaughey he viewed him as the most serious offender yet.
Last month, McFadden ordered Geoffrey Sills of Mechanicsville, Virginia, to serve four years in prison for robbing and beating an officer with his own baton. Two weeks earlier, he sentenced Tristan Chandler Stevens, who went to trial with McCaughey, to five years in prison for assaulting former U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell with a riot shield. David Mehaffie, an Ohio man who was convicted of two felony counts but found not to have engaged in or aided the assault on police was sentenced by McFadden to 14 months in prison.
McCaughey was convicted of three separate counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding police, including an enhanced felony charge for using a deadly or dangerous weapon. He was the only defendant not already in pre-trial detention who McFadden “stepped back” or ordered immediately into custody — following his conviction.
While delivering his verdict, McFadden described in detail the harrowing moment when McCaughey used a riot shield and the force of the mob behind him to pin DC Police Officer Daniel Hodges in a doorframe while he screamed for help.
“Officer Hodges’ gut wrenching cries of pain shocked Mr. McCaughey into action,” Judge McFadden said, adding a short time later, “I note that even after he saw Officer Hodges injured, he carried on to battle Officer [Henry] Foulds.”
On Friday, McFadden said he believed McCaughey had lied on the stand and rejected his efforts to downplay his role in the riot.
Hodges testified at trial that he feared he would lose consciousness from the pressure against him and would become a liability for his fellow officers who were attempting to repel the violent mob. In their memo, prosecutors highlighted how McCaughey pinned Hodges for two minutes while he screamed for help.
“In this case, the restraint applied to the victim was neither fleeting nor accidental,” they wrote. “It was concerted, forceful and intended to harm law enforcement generally for defending the tunnel and its entrance.”
McCaughey’s memo struck a decidedly different tone. Over 25 pages, his attorney, Boyle, repeatedly described his 25-year-old client’s “selfless” nature and role as a “pillar in his community” — the affluent Connective town of Ridgefield. McCaughey blamed his father, described variously as a “fervent Trump supporter” and “radical,” for his presence in D.C. His aunt is quoted as remembering him as an “especially kind and thoughtful child.”
Despite claiming he has “fully admitted his role in the riot, McCaughey’s memo only briefly touched upon his actual conduct that day. Hodges’ name only appeared twice in McCaughey’s memo — both times in a footnote arguing his injuries couldn’t be attributed to McCaughey.
In a paragraph beginning on page 22 of 25, McCaughey said his actions were “limited to pushing officers with a riot shield” and were “only impactful due to the force of the protestors who proceeded to push Mr. McCaughey into the line of officers.”
Hodges himself spoke briefly Friday. He laments the loss of the 50 police officers he said he understood had left his department citing Jan. 6, and described McCaughey as the “vanguard of the assault” on the Capitol.
“Of all of the weapons utilized that day, the most offensive one was the mob,” Hodges said.
McCaughey also spoke — striking a different tone than his sentencing memo. In a quiet monotone, he told McFadden he’d acted like a “thug” on Jan. 6 and apologize to the “exhausted, beaten” officers he’d assaulted as part of an “unrelenting mob.” He also apologized to his mother, who was in the courtroom to hear his sentence.
“I’m sorry mother for the anguish I’ve caused and the disappointment I’ve become,” he said. “None of this is your fault.”
McFadden agreed to recommend McCaughey be placed at the low-security prison in Danbury, Connecticut, near where his family is located.
April 14, 2023: The Department of Justice posted “Connecticut Man Sentenced for Felony and Misdemeanor Charges Related To Capitol Breach.”
Defendant Was Among Those Who Joined In Assaults on Officers At Lower West Terrace
A Connecticut man was sentenced today in the District of Columbia on felony and misdemeanor offenses for his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.
Patrick E, McCaughey III, 25, of Ridgefield, Connecticut, was sentenced to 90 months in prison for nine offenses. He was found guilty following the bench trial, on September 13, 2022, along with co-defendants Tristan Chandler Stevens, 26, of Pensacola Florida, and David Mehaffie, 63, of Kettering, Ohio, who are awaiting sentencing.
McCaughey was convicted of seven felony charges: three counts of aiding or abetting or assaulting, resisting or impeding law enforcement officers, including one involving a dangerous weapon; one count of obstruction of an official proceeding; one count of interfering with a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder; one count of disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon. The two misdemeanor charges include: disorderly conduct in a Capitol Building and committing an act of violence in the Capitol Building or grounds.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden ordered 36 months of supervised release and restitution of $2,000.
According to the government’s evidence, on Jan. 6, 2021, McCaughey, Stephens, and Mehaffie all traveled to Washington, D.C., from their respective homes. Each illegally made his way on to the restricted grounds of the U.S. Capitol. McCaughey and Stevens taunted officers at the West Front, and Mehaffie yelled at nearby rioters who were hesitating to illegally cross the other perimeter, “If we can’t fight over this wall, we can’t win the battle!”
The three defendants ultimately broke through the police line after approximately 2:30 p.m., when the line on the West Front failed under the siege of the advancing mob. Each of the defendants scaled the Southwest scaffolding and staircase, to converge together at the tunnel created by the inaugural platform structure on the Lower West Terrace of the Capitol Building.
At the Lower West Terrace, officers of the U.S. Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department guarded the entrance to the door to the Capitol from the mob — including McCaughey, Stevens and Mehaffie — for several hours.
Between 2:41 p.m., and 3:19 p.m., the three defendants attempted to break into the building by directing other rioters, participating in heave-hos against the police line, using riot shields stolen from Captiol Police, and assaulting three specific officers. Mehaffe hung from an archway and shouted direction from above, and McCaughey and Stevens were key players in the melee below. McCaughey grabbed a riot shield and used it as a weapon. Even after officers finally cleared the tunnel area, the three defendants illegally remained on Capitol grounds.
McCaughey was arrested on Jan. 9, 2021, in South Salem, New York.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorneys Officer for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was provided by the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the District of Connecticut.
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s New Haven, Albany, and Washington D.C. Field Officers. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department. The FBI’s Washington Field Office identified McCaughey as #62, Stevens as #64, and Mehaffie as #86 on its seeking information photos.
In the 27 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,000 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 320 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.
April 11, 2023: WUSA9 reported “Capitol rioter who dressed like Jack Skellington sentenced to 6 years in prison for assaulting police. It was written by Jordan Fischer.
A Nevada man who attacked multiple police officers while dressed as a character from “The Nightmare Before Christmas” was sentenced to six years in prison on Tuesday on two felony counts.
Josiah Kenyon, 35, of Winnemucca, Nevada, was ordered to serve 72 months in prison and pay $43,315 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols. Kenyon pleaded guilty in September to two felony counts of assaulting police with a dangerous weapon, including one count with an enhancement for causing bodily injury.
According to a statement of facts in Kenyon’s plea agreement, he first attended former President Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6 before joining a crowd of thousands of people that marched to the U.S. Capitol Building.
There — while dressed as Jack Skellington from “The Nightmare Before Christmas” — Kenyon used his fist and a flagpole to damage a window and also repeatedly assaulted officer inside the Lower West Terrace Tunnel by throwing multiple objects, including a large plastic pylon, and then attacking them with a table leg with a protruding nail.
“At approximately 5:01:24 JOSIAH KENYON begins striking officers with what appears to be a table leg,” prosecutors wrote in Kenyon’s statement of facts. “He strikes MPD Officer K.H. in the leg after Officer K.H. falls to the ground. Officer K.H. suffered bodily injury in the form of pain and swelling to his right ankle. JOSHUA KENYON then hits MPD Officer C.L. in the head with the chair leg. Officer C.L. is wearing a helmet and as he is truck, a part of the table leg becomes momentarily lodged in the opening between the top of the officer’s face shield and the helmet.”
Prosecutors asked Nichols to sentence Kenyon to 88 months in prison, or more than seven years behind bars. Kenyon’s attorney, assistant federal public defender Ubong Akpan, asked for a lower sentence of four years. In her memo, she highlighted the unfortunate circumstances of his life – including the long period of time he lived on the streets beginning as a teenager. She also argued by late 2020 he had been “continually bombarded with conspiracy theories” and was propelled to action against what he saw as a corrupt government.
“For Josiah, the corruption he believed he had witnessed, along with the impact it had on dashing his hopes for his family, propelled him to action,” Akpan wrote.
Perhaps most dramatically, Akpan argued by Jan. 6 Kenyon had given up on his life.
“He admitted to trying to raise the violence level, but in the end, he was emotional when talking to the police and stated that his ultimate goal was to get shot, believing that he had failed his family and that they would be better off without him,” she wrote.
On Tuesday, Nichols ordered Kenyon to serve 72 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Kenyon was also ordered to pay more than $43,000 in restitution to one of the officers he attacked.
More than 1,000 people have now been charged in connection with the Capitol riot, including more than 330 people who have been charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding police. Of those, more than 100 are accused of using a deadly or dangerous weapon of or causing serious bodily injury.
April 11, 2023: United States Attorney’s Office District of Columbia posted: “Nevada Man Sentenced for Assaulting Officers During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach”
Defendant Threw Objects at Officers, Using Makeshift Weapons, And Damaged Exterior window
A Nevada man was sentenced today for assaulting law enforcement officers with a dangerous weapon during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the presidential election.
Josiah Kenyon, 35, of Winnemucca, Nevada, was sentenced to 72 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $43,315.25 in restitution. Kenyon pleaded guilty to two felonies — assaulting a law enforcement officer with a dangerous weapon and assaulting a law enforcement officer with a dangerous weapon resulting in bodily injury — on September 14, 2022, before U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols, in the District of Columbia.
According to the court documents, Kenyon was illegally in the Capitol Building from approximately 2:43 p.m. until 3:18 p.m., near a Senate Wing door and the Crypt. Kenyon was wearing a “Jack Skellington” costume, based on a character from the movie “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” While outside the Capitol Building, he and others damaged an exterior window, causing more than $40,000 in damage. Kenyon first attempted to break the window with a closed fist, and then used a flagpole to hit the window.
Between approximately 4:54 p.m. and 5:04 p.m., Kenyon was outside in the Lower West Terrace area. While there, he used a variety of objects to assault officers in the tunnel leading to the Capitol. He threw a large plastic pylon towards officers, striking one officer’s riot shield. He also struck offices with what appeared to be a table leg. He hit one officer in the leg, causing the officer to fall to the ground; the office suffered pain and swelling to his right ankle. He then hit another officer in the head, with the table leg momentarily lodged between that officer’s helmet and face shield.
Kenyon was arrested on Dec. 1, 2021, in Reno, Nevada.
This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provide by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada.
The case was investigated by the FBI Las Vegas Field Office — Reno Resident Agency, and the FBI’s Washington Field Office, which identified Kenyon as #94 in its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the FBI Los Angeles Field Office – West Covina Resident Agency, the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, Reno, Nevada, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Metro Transit Police Department, and the U.S. Capitol Police.
In the 27 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,000 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the reach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 320 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. Thursday investigation is ongoing.
April 11, 2023: Reno Gazette Journal posted: “Winnemucca man sentenced for assaulting officers during the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection”
A Winnemucca man was sentenced six years in prison Tuesday for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Josiah Kenyon, 35, threw objects at officers, used makeshift weapons and damaged exterior windows during the Capitol breach, according to the U.S. District Attorney’s Office.
According to court documents, he was dressed in a Jack Skellington costume from the movie “The Nightmare Before Christmas” when he and hundreds of others disrupted a joint session of Congress as it counted electoral votes related to the presidential election.
Kenyon illegally entered the Capitol around 3 p.m. near a Senate wing door and was inside for nearly half an hour.
Prior to entering the building, he and a group of others broke a window — Kenyon first attempted to break it with his fist, then used a flagpole to hit the window.
Kenyon used a variety of objects to assault officers while outside the building. He threw a plastic pylon at officers, striking one officer’s riot shield. He also hit officers with what appeared to be a table leg, striking one in the leg and another in the head. The officer hit in the leg fell to the ground and had swelling in his right ankle; when Kenyon struck the officer in the head, the table leg lodged between the officer’s helmet and face shield.
Kenyon was arrested on Dec. 1, 2021 in Reno.
January 13, 2021: The Associated Press posted: “West Texas flower shop owner charged in Capitol riot” It was written by Jamie Stengle.
A West Texas flower shop owner who posted a video on Facebook bragging about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office being broken into during the U.S. Capitol riot last week, was arrested Wednesday, federal officials said.
The FBI arrested Jenny Cudd and another Midland resident, Eliel Rosa, in connection with the Jan. 6 insurrection, said Daryl Fields, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Antonio.
The Midland Reporter-Telegram reports that Cudd and Rosa appeared Wednesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald Griffin in Midland. Each is charged with entering a restricted building and disorderly conducts, both misdemeanors. The court set personal recognizance bonds for them.
In the Facebook video, Cudd says, “we did break down … Nancy Pelosi’s office door.”
But Cudd, a former Midland mayoral candidate, said in a video message to the AP that she didn’t personally go into Pelosi’s office or see people break down the door, and that when she said “we” she meant all of the people who were at the Capitol. She said she didn’t do anything violent or destroy any property.
Her attorney, Don Flanary, said the charges reflect that.
“She basically just been charged with being there,” he said.
“We’re pretty confident that the cameras will show she was only in the public portions of the Capitol,” Flanary said.
After the riot at the Capitol, Cudd’s Midland shop, Becky’s Flowers, was flooded with dozens of one-star reviews in which she was called a traitor and domestic terrorist, along with photos of her inside the Capitol.
“I walked through an open door into the Capitol along with several hundred other people,” Cudd said.
The newspaper reports that Cudd has been active in protests in the Midland area against restrictions because of the coronavirus, including mask mandates and business closures.
It was not immediately clear if Rosa had an attorney and a home phone number could not immediately be found for him.
A mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol building last week following a rally the president held. Prosecutors have filed dozens of cases so far for a variety of offenses ranging from assaulting police officers, to entering restricted areas of the U.S. Capitol, stealing federal property and threatening lawmakers.
January 13, 2021: MRT reported: “Jenny Cudd faces two charges”
Midland’s Jenny Cudd and Eliel Rosa both face two misdemeanor charges related to their participation in the U.S. Capitol riots on Jan. 6.
The charges, as stated in federal court on Wednesday, are entering and remaining on restricted grounds (a class A misdemeanor) and disorderly conduct (a class B misdemeanor). The FBI arrested Cudd and Rosa Wednesday, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The initial appearance in federal court took place Wednesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald Griffin.
The Court set a personal recognizance (or PR) bond for the two. Currently, there are no restrictions although the federal government can set restrictions if they want. Cudd was represented by Don Flanery. She also will be represented by Marina Medrin when in Washington D.C.
Cudd’s next appearance in court is set for Jan. 21 in D.C. She faces up to one year in prison if found guilty of the class A misdemeanor and up to six months in prison if found guilty of the class B misdemeanor.
October 13, 2021: CNN Politics posted: “Texas florist becomes 100th US Capitol rioter to plead guilty. It was written by Marshall Cohen and Hannah Rabinowitz.
A Texas florist became the 100th person to plead guilty in connection with the January 6 insurrection, a landmark moment more than nine months after the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Jenny Cudd, 37, pleaded guilty Wednesday to entering a restricted building, namely the Capitol. Cudd could face up to one year in jail, through the federal guidelines call for zero to six months. Capitol rioters with similar cases have received probation or a few weeks behind bars.
The facts of her case are routine, but she went viral in February after she asked a judge to attend a four-day work retreat near Cancun, Mexico. District Judge Trevor McFadden approved her request, citing the fact that prosecutors didn’t have any opposition.
Federal prosecutors say Cudd is unrepentant, citing a Facebook video in which she said, “F— yes, I am proud of my actions, I f–ing charged the Capitol today with patriots today. Hell, yes, I am proud of my actions,” according to court records, and a local news interview in which she said: “I would absolutely do it again.”
The Justice Department has used comments like these to push for harsher sentences, and some judges have cited rioters’ defiance in sending them to jail. Sentencing is set for March 11.
In the nine months since January 6, the Justice Department has charged at least 635 people and has secured 100 guilty pleas, according to CNN’s tally. Most of the guilty pleas involve nonviolent rioters like Cudd. But a handful of more serious defendants have also pleaded guilty, including people with ties to far-right extremists groups and people who assaulted the police.
Seventeen people have been sentenced so far, with punishments ranging from probation to eight months in prison. Three of the four defendants sentenced this week have received jail time.
Cudd’s co-defendant, Brazilian national Eliel Rosa, pleaded guilty to a similar charge in July and was sentenced to one year probation. Cudd and Rosa both live in Midland, Texas.
January 14, 2021: Law & Crime posted: “Woman Who Proudly Admitted to Storming Nancy Pelosi’s Office is Charged in D.C. Insurrection.”
A Texas woman who admitted on camera to storming the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been charged for her part in the D.C. insurrection. Federal prosecutors are going after both Jenny Louise Cudd and co-defendant Eliel Rosa.
In an affidavit, the Federal Bureau of Investigation cited Facebook video in which Cudd said she was present for and participated in events at the Capitol Building.
“I was here today on January 6th when the new revolution started at the Capitol,” she said, according to the FBI.
Supporters of President Donald Trump raided the Capitol Building on January 6, after POTUS continued to claim that he actually won the presidential election and that it was being stolen from him. Insurrectionists paused proceedings but did not stop Congress from certifying results for President-Elect Joe Biden.
People notably broke into Pelosi’s office. Perhaps it’s no surprise since she is oft a target of Trump’s bully pulpit. In any case, Cudd placed herself at the speaker’s office.
“We did break down the Nancy Pelosi’s office door and somebody stole her gavel and took a picture sitting in the chair flipping off the camera,” she said in the FBI’s account of her video.
Rosa was identified through a picture he posted to Facebook of him and Cudd, according to authorities. The feds said they interviewed him in Midland, Texas (where Cudd once ran for mayor), and he admitted that he and she both entered the Capitol Building on January 6.
From the FBI:
Cudd has denied wrongdoing.
“I personally didn’t break anything,” she told The Odessa American in a Jan 7. report. “I didn’t break down any doors. I didn’t do anything violent. No one that I saw had any weapons of any sort.”
She insisted she did not break the law but she and Rosa are being charged with entering the Capitol Building and engaging in disruptive behavior to impede government business. From the FBI:
Your affiant submits there is also a probably cause to believe that Jenny Louis Cudd and Eliel Rosa violated 40 U.S.C. 5104(e), which makes it a crime to willfully and knowingly (D) utter loud, threatening, or abusive language, or engage in disorderly or disruptive conduct, at any place in the Grounds or in any of the Capitol Buildings with the intent to impede, disrupt, or disturb the orderly conduct of a session of Congress or either House of Congress, or the orderly conduct in that building of a hearing before, or any deliberations of, a committee of Congress or either House of Congress; (E) obstruct or impede passage through or within, the Grounds or any of the Capitol Buildings; and (G) parade, demonstrate, or picket any of the Capitol Buildings.
Cudd attorney Don Flanary told the Midland Reporter-Telegram in a Wednesday report that his client will plead not guilty.
The Department of Justice posted: STATEMENT OF FACTS
NOTE: It is not clear exactly when this information was posted.
Your affiant is a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and have been so employe since January 2004. As a Special Agent with the FBI, I am authorized by law or by a Government agency to engage in or supervise the prevention, detention, investigation or prosecution of a violation of Federal criminal laws.
The U.S. Capitol is secured 24 hours a day by U.S. Capitol Police. Restrictions around the U.S. Capitol include permanent and temporary security barriers and posts manned by U.S. Capitol Police. Restrictions around the U.S. Capitol include permanent and temporary security barriers and posts manned by U.S. Capitol Police.
Only authorized people with appropriate identification are allowed access inside the U.S. Capitol. On January 6, 2021, the exterior plaza of the U.S. Capitol was also closed to members of the public. I am assisting in the investigation and prosecution of events which occurred at the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The U.S. Capitol, which is located at First Street, SE, in Washington, D.C., is secured 24 hours a day by U.S. Capitol Police. Restrictions around the U.S. Capitol include permanent and temporary security barriers and posts manned by U.S. Capitol Police. Only authorized people with appropriate identification are allowed access inside the U.S. Capitol.
On January 6, 2021, the exterior plaza of the U.S. Capitol was closed to members of the public.
On January 6, 2021, a joint session of the United States Congress convened at the United States Capitol, which is located at First Street, SE, in Washington, D.C. During the joint session, elected members of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate were meeting in separate chambers of the United States Capitol to certify the vote count of the Electoral College of the 2020 Presidential Election, which had taken place on November 3, 2020.
The joint session began approximately 1:00 p.m. Shortly thereafter, by approximately 1:30 p.m., the House and Senate adjourned to separate chambers to resolve a particular objection. Vice President Mike Pence was present and presiding, first in the joint session, and then in the Senate chamber.
As the proceedings continued in both the House and the Senate, and with Vice President Mike Pence present and presiding over the Senate, a large crowd gathered outside the U.S. Capitol. As noted above, temporary and permanent barricades were in place around the exterior of the U.S. Capitol building and the proceedings underway inside.
At approximately 2:00 p.m., certain individuals in the crowd forced their way through, up, and over the barricades, and officers of the U.S. Capitol Police, and the crowd advanced to the exterior facade of the building. The crowd was not lawfully authorized to enter or remain in the building, and, prior to entering the building, no members of the crows submitted to security screenings or weapons checks by U.S. Capitol Police Officers or other authorized security officials.
At such time, the certification proceedings, still underway and the exterior doors and windows of the U.S. Capitol were locked or otherwise secure. Members of the U.S. Capitol Police attempted to maintain order and keep the crowd from entering the Capitol; however, shortly after 2:00 p.m, individuals in the crowd forced entry into the U.S. Capitol, including by breaking windows and by assaulting members of the U.S. Capitol Police, as others in the crowd encouraged and assisted those acts.
Shortly thereafter, at approximately 2:20 p.m., members of the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate, including the President of the Senate, Vice President Mike Pence, were instructed to — and did — evacuate the chambers. Accordingly, all proceedings of the United States of the United States Congress, including the joint session, were effectively suspended until shortly after 8:00 p.m. the same day.
In light of the dangerous circumstances caused by the unlawful entry to the U.S. Capitol, including the danger posed by the individuals who had entered the U.S. Capitol without any security screening or weapons check, Congressional proceedings could not resume unilaterally after every unauthorized occupant left the U.S. Capitol, and the building had been confirmed secured.
The proceedings resumed at approximately 8:00 pm after the building had been secured. Vice President Pence remained in the United States Capitol from the time he was evacuated from the Senate Chamber until the session resumed.
During national news coverage of the aforementioned events, video footage which appeared to be captured on mobile devices of persons present on the scene depicted evidence of violations of local and federal law, including scores of individuals inside the U.S. Capitol building without authority to be here.
Based on information I have reviewed, I estimate that between approximately 2:36 p.m, and 2:45 p.m., Jenny Louise Cudd, also known as Jenny Haning Cudd on social media platforms, and Eliel Rosa entered the United States Capitol and have observed the following involving Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa:
At approximately 2:35 p.m., Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa, enter the U.S. Capitol via Upper West Terrace Door.
At approximately 2:36 p.m., Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa, are observed inside the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol from the west side doorway that leads to the Rotunda. They are observed remaining inside the Rotunda until approximately 2:39 p.m. They are further observed taking pictures of the Rotunda and the surrounding area.
At approximately 2:39 p.m., Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa are observed walking the Statuary Hall area of the U.S. Capitol.
At approximately 2:40, p.m., Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa are observed walking the Statuary Hall Connector and moves off camera at approximately 2:42 p.m.
At approximately 2:43 p.m., Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa are observed departing from a large crowd inside the U.S. Capitol in front of the Main Door of the House Chamber and walks east toward the staircase.
Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa are subsequently observed walking past the staircase and is further observed walking past the Upper House Door, going toward the other entrance to the House Chamber.
Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa are observed at approximately 2:54 p.m. at the Upper House Door and further observed departing the U.S. Capitol.
Kenny Cudd and Eliel Rosa were photographed inside the Capitol Building. Jenny Louise Cudd is the female wearing the tan hat in the front of Figure 1 below. Eliel Rosa is behind Cudd and to her left wearing a red hat.
Afterwards, Jenny Louise Cudd streamed a live video, via Facebook, which is a social media platform. From a screenshot of the video (in Figure 2 below), Jenny Louise Cudd appears to be wearing the same clothing she wore while inside the Capitol as depicted in Figure 1 above. Eliel Rosa posted a photo of himself and Jenny Louise Cudd on his Facebook page.
Facebook video that she was at the Willard Hotel, located on 1401 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington D.C. 2004. During the course of the video she made the following comments to confirm the location and date of the video recording.
“I am sitting in front of the Willard Hotel, as I always do when I am in DC protesting,” and “I was here today on January 6th when the new revolution started at the Capitol.”
In addition, your affiant viewed a photograph of an individual matching the clothing of Jenny Cudd taken inside the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. The photograph included the individual matching the description of Jenny Cudd, who was also in the presence of other individuals who unlawfully entered the U.S. Capitol. The video was posted on a Facebook account with the name Jenny Haning Cudd.
During the course of the Facebook video, Jenny Cudd made the following statements indicating her admission of entering the U.S. Capitol. “We were on the south lawn listening to the President and before the speech was over we started to head up to the Capitol.” Your affiant has identified this was the location of a speech given by U.S. President Donald Trump on January 6th in Washington, D.C.
Jenny Cudd further stated, “we just pushed, pushed, and pushed, and yelled go and yelled charge. We just pushed and pushed and we got it.” Your affiant has identified this was a reference to the large crowd of individuals who forced their way inside the U.S. Capitol.
Jenny Cudd stated on video “… and we got in. We got to the top of the Capitol and there was a door open and we went inside.” Jenny Cudd also stated in the video, the following indicating her presence inside the U.S. Capitol, “We did break down the Nancy Pelosi’s office door and somebody stole her gavel and took a picture in he chair flipping off the camera.”
Later in the video recording, she further stated her presence inside the U.S. Capitol. “They had to evacuate it before we charged the Capitol.” Jenny Cudd is referring to members of Congress and the U.S. Senate evacuating the House Chambers and the Senate Floor prior to the forced entry of demonstrators. Jenny Cudd also stated the following during the video, “I stood outside of the Capitol and I will send photos of that too.” In addition, she added the following recorded statement, … fuck yes, I am proud of my actions, I fucking charged the Capitol today with patriots today. Hell, yes, I am proud of my actions.”
On January 8, 2021, Jenny Louise Cudd participated in an interview with a local news station in which she describes her actions on January 6, 2021, in Washington D.C., to include her admission of entering the U.S. Capitol on the same date.
Specifically, Jenny Louise Cudd states during her interview, she stated the following, “we walked up the steps and walked inside an open door (referring to the U.S. Capitol).” Jenny Louise Cudd further stated, “we the Patriots did storm the U.S. Capitol.” She added in reference to entering the U.S. Capitol, “Yes I would absolutely do it again.”
On January 8, 2021, Eliel Rosa was interviewed by the FBI in Midland, Texas. During the interview, Eliel Rosa admitted that he and Jenny Louise Cudd had entered the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Based on the foregoing, your affiant submits that there is a probably cause to believe that Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa violated 18 U.S.C. 1752(a)(1) and (2), which makes it a crime to (1) knowingly enter or remain in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority to do; and
(2) knowingly, and with intent to impede or disrupts the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions; engage in disorderly or disruptive conduct, or within such proximity to, any restricted building or grounds when, or so that, such conduct, in fact, impedes or disrupts the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions; or attempts or conspires to do so.
For purposes of Section 1752 of Title 18, a “restricted building” includes a posted, cordoned off, or otherwise restricted area of a building or grounds where the President or other person protected by the Secret Service, including the Vice President, is or will be temporarily visiting; or any building or grounds so restricted in conjunction with an event designated as a special event of national significance.
Your affiant submits there is also probably cause to believe that Jenny Louise Cudd and Eliel Rosa violated 40 U.S.C. 5104(e), which make it a crime to willfully and knowingly (D) utter loud, threatening, or abusive language, or engage in disorderly or disruptive conduct, at any place in the Grounds or in any of the Capitol Buildings with intent to impede, disrupt, or disturb the orderly conduct of a session of Congress or either House of Congress, or the orderly conduct in that building of a hearing before, or any deliberations of, a committee of Congress or either House of Congress; (E) obstruct, or impede passage through or within, the Capitol Grounds of any of the Capitol Buildings; and (G) parade, demonstrate, or picket in any of the Capitol Buildings.