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Oath Keepers is an American far-right anti-government militia whose leaders have been convicted of violently opposing the government of the United States, including the transfer of presidential power as prescribed by the United States constitution. It was incorporated in 2009 by founder Elmer Stewart Rhodes, a lawyer and former paratrooper. In 2023, Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years for seditious conspiracy for his role in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, and another Oath Keepers leader, Kelly Meggs, was sentenced to 12 years for the same crime. Three other members have pleaded guilty to this crime, and four other members have been convicted of it.
The Federal Correctional Institution, Allenwood Low is a low-security United States federal prison for male inmates in Gregg Township, Union County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Allenwood Federal Correctional Complex and is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice.
The Proud Boys is a North American far-right, neo-fascist militant organization that promotes and engages in political violence. The group's leaders have been convicted of violently opposing the federal government of the United States, including its constitutionally-prescribed transfer of presidential power. It has been called a street gang and was designated as a terrorist group in Canada and New Zealand. The Proud Boys are opposed to left-wing and progressive groups and support Donald Trump, the former president of the United States. While Proud Boys leadership has denied being a white supremacist organization, the group and some of its members have been connected to white supremacist events, ideologies, and other white-power groups throughout its existence.
Marina Medvin is an American criminal defense attorney located in Alexandria, Virginia.
Joseph Randall Biggs is an American veteran, media personality, organizer of the Proud Boys, and convicted felon for his participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of then–U.S. President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup d'état two months after his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. They sought to keep him in power by occupying the Capitol and preventing a joint session of Congress from counting the Electoral College votes to formalize the victory of President-elect Joe Biden. The attack was ultimately unsuccessful in preventing the certification of the election results. According to the bipartisan House select committee that investigated the incident, the attack was the culmination of a seven-part plan by Trump to overturn the election. Within 36 hours, six people died: one was shot by Capitol Police, another died of a drug overdose, three died of natural causes, and a police officer died after being assaulted by rioters. Many people were injured, including 174 police officers. Four officers who responded to the attack died by suicide within seven months. Damage caused by attackers exceeded $2.7 million.
Jacob Anthony Angeli Chansley, also known as the QAnon Shaman, Q Shaman, and Yellowstone Wolf, is an American far-right conspiracy theorist, rioter, politician, media figure, and felon who participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, for which he was convicted after a guilty plea on charges of obstructing an official proceeding. He is a supporter of former US president Donald Trump and a former believer and disseminator of the QAnon conspiracy theory.
On January 7, 2021, a United States Capitol Police (USCP) officer, Brian Sicknick, died after suffering two strokes the day after he responded to the attack on the U.S. Capitol during which he was assaulted with a chemical spray by two rioters. His cremated remains were laid in honor in the Capitol Rotunda on February 2, 2021, before they were buried with full honors at Arlington National Cemetery. The District of Columbia chief medical examiner found that Sicknick had died as the result of two strokes, classifying his death as natural and additionally commented that "all that transpired played a role in his condition", a decision which was criticized by some expert neurologists, who have stated that stress resulting from the insurrection at the Capitol may have caused the stroke. Multiple media outlets reported Sicknick's death was due to injuries he sustained, but months later the Washington, D.C. medical examiner reported there were no injuries to Sicknick. Within a day after his death, the U.S. Capitol Police and the U.S. Justice Department each said that his death was due to injuries from the attack. Meanwhile, media, citing two anonymous law enforcement officials, incorrectly reported for weeks that Sicknick had died after being struck in the head with a fire extinguisher during the unrest.
The January 6 United States Capitol attack was followed by political, legal, and social repercussions. The second impeachment of Donald Trump, who was charged for incitement of insurrection for his conduct, occurred on January 13. At the same time, Cabinet officials were pressured to invoke the 25th Amendment for removing Trump from office. Trump was subsequently acquitted in the Senate trial, which was held in February after Trump had already left office. The result was a 57–43 vote in favor of conviction, with every Democrat and seven Republicans voting to convict, but two-thirds of the Senate are required to convict. Many in the Trump administration resigned. Several large companies announced they were halting all political donations, and others have suspended funding the lawmakers who had objected to certifying Electoral College results. A bill was introduced to form an independent commission, similar to the 9/11 Commission, to investigate the events surrounding the attack; it passed the House but was blocked by Republicans in the Senate. The House then approved a House "select committee" to investigate the attack. In June, the Senate released the results of its own investigation of the attack. The event led to strong criticism of law enforcement agencies. Leading figures within the United States Capitol Police resigned. A large-scale criminal investigation was undertaken, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) opening more than 1,200 case files. Federal law enforcement undertook a nationwide manhunt for the perpetrators, with arrests and indictments following within days. Over 890 people had been found guilty of federal crimes.
Dominic Pezzola is an American convicted felon and member of the Proud Boys who participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, a violent attack at the U.S. Capitol. He is best known for stealing a police riot shield and using it to break a Capitol window on January 6, 2021, making him the first rioter to breach the building. Indicted in 2021, on federal charges, he was tried in 2023 alongside Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and his key lieutenants, Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, and Zachary Rehl. In May 2023, following a five-month jury trial, Pezzola was convicted of obstructing a congressional proceeding, assaulting a police officer, and other crimes. He was acquitted of seditious conspiracy, the most serious charge. The jury deadlocked on other charges against Pezzola, including conspiring to obstruct the counting of the electoral votes.
On January 6, 2021, supporters of then-President Donald Trump attacked the U.S. Capitol Building, disrupting the joint session of Congress assembled to count electoral votes to formalize Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 United States Presidential Election. By the end of the month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had opened more than 400 case files and issued more than 500 subpoenas and search warrants related to the riot. The FBI also created a website to solicit tips from the public specifically related to the riot and were especially assisted by the crowdsourced sleuthing group Sedition Hunters. By the end of 2021, 725 people had been charged with federal crimes. That number rose to 1,000 by the second anniversary of the attack, and to 1,200 by the third anniversary, at which point over 890 people had been found guilty of federal crimes. These federal cases are handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia (D.C.). State cases, of which there are fewer, are handled in the D.C. Superior Court.
Michael Fanone is an American law enforcement analyst, author, and retired policeman. He worked for the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia from 2001 until his retirement in 2021. Fanone was present at the U.S. Capitol during the January 2021 attack, and testified with his colleagues in front of the House Select Committee investigating the attack in 2021.
Corruptly obstructing, influencing, or impeding an official proceeding is a felony under U.S. federal law. It was enacted as part of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002 in reaction to the Enron scandal, and closed a legal loophole on who could be charged with evidence tampering by defining the new crime very broadly.
Kelly Meggs is an American convicted felon who previously led the Oath Keepers' Florida chapter. He was found guilty of seditious conspiracy following his forced entry into the United States Capitol during the January 6 United States Capitol attack. Meggs was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Richard Morris "Bigo" Barnett is an American convicted felon who took part in the United States Capitol attack on January 6, 2021. A photograph of Barnett with his feet on a desk in Nancy Pelosi’s office in the Capitol building became one of the most prominent images of the January 6 attack.
Roberto Antonio Minuta is a tattoo artist and a member of the Oath Keepers, who in 2023 was found guilty of seditious conspiracy after forcing his way into the United States Capitol building during the January 6 United States Capitol attack in 2021.
Kevin James Lyons is an American convicted criminal who stole a photograph of Congressman John Lewis from house speaker Nancy Pelosi's office as he participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
Peter Francis Stager is an American truck driver and convicted criminal who attacked a police officer with a flagpole during the January 6 United States Capitol attacks.
Rachel Marie Powell, also known as "Pink Hat Lady" and "Bullhorn Lady", is an American convicted felon known for her participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, in which she wore a pink hat and used a bullhorn to instruct other rioters.
References
- ↑ "Man carrying Confederate flag in Capitol on Jan. 6 sentenced to 3 years". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286 . Retrieved 2023-02-10.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Lybr, Holmes (2023-02-09). "Man who used Confederate flag against Capitol Police officer on January 6 sentenced to 3 years in prison | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
- 1 2 3 "Capitol rioter who jabbed Confederate flag at black cop jailed". BBC News. 2023-02-09. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
- 1 2 "Kevin Seefried, Jan. 6 rioter who carried Confederate flag through Capitol, sentenced to 3 years in prison". www.cbsnews.com. 9 February 2023. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
- ↑ McLaughlin, Eliott C. (January 7, 2021). "Before Wednesday, insurgents waving Confederate flags hadn't been within 6 miles of the US Capitol". CNN . Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- ↑ Multiple sources:
- Cramer, Maria (January 9, 2021). "Confederate Battle Flag in the Capitol: A 'Jarring' First in U.S. History". The New York Times . Archived from the original on January 9, 2021. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
- Blumenthal, Sidney (January 9, 2021). "Trump's Maga insurrectionists were perverse US civil war re-enactors". The Guardian . Archived from the original on January 10, 2021. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- Smith, Clint (January 8, 2021). "The Whole Story in a Single Photo". The Atlantic . Archived from the original on January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
During the Civil War, the Confederate Army never reached the Capitol. The rebel flag, to my knowledge, had never been flown inside the halls of Congress until Wednesday. Two days ago, a man walked through the halls of government bearing the flag of a group of people who had seceded from the United States and gone to war against it.
- ↑ "Confederate flag-toting man, son convicted in Capitol riot". POLITICO. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
- ↑ "Kevin Seefried, who brought Confederate flag inside Capitol on Jan. 6, found guilty of obstruction of Congress". www.cbsnews.com. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-10.