On Wednesday, a federal judge acquitted a January 6 defendant on all charges after ruling that the New Mexico man &#8220;reasonably believed&#8221; he was allowed to enter the Capitol building during the protest against the 2020 election results after being let in by United States Capitol Police officers.
Judge Trevor McFadden &#8220;issued the verdict from the bench after hearing testimony without a jury in the case against Matthew Martin,&#8221; The Washington Post <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/man-who-testified-at-his-capitol-riot-trial-awaits-verdict/2022/04/06/38b91c54-b5cc-11ec-8358-20aa16355fb4_story.html">reported</a>.
Martin was the first January 6 defendant to testify in his defense trial and argued that Capitol Police allowed him to enter the facility. According to the Post, Martin &#8220;said he &#8216;went with the flow&#8217; as he approached the Capitol and testified that he saw a police officer wave him into the building.&#8221;
He was in the Capitol building for roughly 10 minutes on that day.
The Post reported:
<div class="article-body" data-qa="article-body">
<blockquote>
Martin was charged with four misdemeanor counts: entering and remaining in a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
</blockquote>
Buzzfeed <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetillman/capitol-riot-verdict-matthew-martin-not-guilty">provided</a> more details behind McFadden&#8217;s verdict:
<blockquote>Announcing his decision from the bench, US District Judge Trevor McFadden said that although prosecutors argued there were numerous instances when Martin would have been aware that he wasn’t allowed on Capitol grounds or inside the building — as he walked past fences with signs saying “AREA CLOSED” and recorded video of a broken window, blaring alarms, police in riot gear, and people who appeared to have encountered tear gas — those were outweighed by Martin’s “plausible” belief that he had permission because officers didn’t try to stop him from entering.
McFadden said that Martin’s conduct was as “minimal and non-serious”as the judge could imagine for someone who went into the Capitol on Jan. 6. He said that Martin seemed to be a “silent observer” of the scene and didn’t try to crowd the police, protest, or wave the “Trump” flag that he was carrying. Martin appeared “quiet” and “orderly” as he walked inside the building, filmed video inside the Rotunda similar to how the media would behave, and didn’t appear to interfere with officers as he filmed a clash with rioters later in the afternoon on a north terrace of the building.</blockquote>
According to The Post, &#8220;More than 770 people have been charged with riot-related federal crimes. Over 240 of them have pleaded guilty, mostly to misdemeanors, and over 140 of them have been sentenced.&#8221;
As noted by Buzzfeed,  the verdict &#8220;represented an early test of efforts by some Jan. 6 defendants to argue that police allowed them to enter the Capitol, or that they believed they had permission because no officer told them to stop.&#8221;
</div>

January 6

Judge Acquits January 6 Defendant: ‘Reasonably Believed’ Capitol Police Let Him In Building

Capitol Grounds

Capitol Riot

The Department of Justice boasted last week that more than 725 people have been arrested in connection to the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6, 2021.
According to the press release, 640 defendants &#8220;have been charged with entering or remaining in a restricted federal building or grounds.&#8221; Some defendants are facing multiple charges.
&#8220;Thursday, Jan. 6 2022, marks one year since the attack on the U.S. Capitol that disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress in the process of affirming the presidential election results,&#8221; the DOJ said. &#8220;The government continues to investigate losses that resulted from the breach of the Capitol, including damage to the Capitol building and grounds, both inside and outside the building.&#8221;
The Justice Department said the monetary cost of damage to the Capitol building is estimated to be $1.5 million worth.
Notably, the left-wing riots and looting that took place across American cities following the death of George Floyd racked up an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riots-looting-that-followed-george-floyds-death-could-cost-2-billion-most-expensive-incident-in-insurance-history">estimated $2 billion</a> in damages.
The DOJ boasted of working at an &#8220;unprecedented speed and scale&#8221; to investigate and prosecute &#8220;those who committed crimes on Jan. 6, 2021,&#8221; and promised to continue the pursuit.
&#8220;Under the continued leadership of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the investigation and prosecution of those responsible for the attack continues to move forward at an unprecedented speed and scale,&#8221; the release said. &#8220;The Department of Justice’s resolve to hold accountable those who committed crimes on Jan. 6, 2021, has not, and will not, wane.&#8221;
Below is a recap of the arrests and charges, per the DOJ:
<ul>
<li><a id="_Hlk87368224" name="_Hlk87368224"></a>More than 225 defendants have been charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers or employees, including over 75 individuals who have been charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer.
<ul>
<li>Approximately 140 police officers were assaulted Jan. 6 at the Capitol including about 80 U.S. Capitol Police and about 60 from the Metropolitan Police Department. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a id="_Hlk82167240" name="_Hlk82167240"></a>Approximately 10 individuals have been arrested on a series of charges that relate to assaulting a member of the media, or destroying their equipment, on Jan. 6.</li>
<li>Approximately 640 defendants have been charged with entering or remaining in a restricted federal building or grounds.
<ul>
<li>Over 75 defendants have been charged with entering a restricted area with a dangerous or deadly weapon.</li>
<li>More than 45 defendants have been charged with destruction of government property, and over 30 defendants have been charged with theft of government property.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>At least 275 defendants have been charged with corruptly obstructing, influencing, or impeding an official proceeding, or attempting to do so.</li>
<li>Approximately 40 defendants have been charged with conspiracy, either: (a) conspiracy to obstruct a congressional proceeding, (b) conspiracy to obstruct law enforcement during a civil disorder, (c) conspiracy to injure an officer, or (d) some combination of the three. </li>
</ul>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/another-unarmed-trump-supporting-grandma-charged-in-jan-6-capitol-breach">Another Unarmed Trump-Supporting Grandma Charged In Jan 6 Capitol Breach</a>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/report-aoc-was-not-inside-capitol-building-during-breach-on-jan-6">Report: AOC Was Not Inside Capitol Building During Breach; AOC Responds: Report ‘Manipulative’</a>

US-POLITICS-ELECTION-TRUMP

725+ People Have Been Arrested For Jan. 6 Capitol Breach, Most Hit For ‘Entering Or Remaining’ In Capitol

Law enforcement officials plan to reinstall fences around the Capitol ahead of a rally in the nation&#8217;s capital next week, according to new reports.
Hundreds are expected to attend the Sept. 18 rally to demand “justice” for Capitol protesters who have been jailed since a riot there on Jan. 6.
&#8220;Though no specific measures have been announced, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi hinted during her weekly press conference Wednesday at extra safety precautions for the Sept. 18 rally by saying: &#8216;We intend to have the integrity of the Capitol be intact,’” The Associated Press <a href="https://www.aol.com/news/police-planning-reinstall-capitol-fence-041333817-093907646.html">reported</a>. &#8220;Briefings for lawmakers, including congressional leaders, are expected in coming days.&#8221;
The AP reported that fencing will be installed on the streets surrounding the Capitol building and the Supreme Court, but not around nearby congressional office buildings. &#8220;The Capitol Police formally requested the fence to the board that oversees it, and it is likely to be approved, according to a House Democratic aide who spoke on condition of anonymity to talk about private discussions,&#8221; said the wire service.
Groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers are planning to attend next week&#8217;s rally, according to intelligence, the AP reported. But Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio has said he &#8220;doesn&#8217;t expect his membership to attend.&#8221;
Organizers of the Capitol rally dubbed the &#8220;Justice For J6,&#8221; say they have received multiple death threats, all turned over to U.S. Capitol Police to investigate.
Matt Braynard, executive director of Look Ahead America, the organizer, said left-leaning activists have threatened him and the group over its continued plan to demand that the protesters are treated as least as well as Antifa, Black Lives Matter, and Trump inauguration protesters, most of whom saw charges of violence dropped.
“Despite all of this entirely peaceful operation by us, I&#8217;m being bombarded with death threats and threats of violence. So, all the violence happening here is exclusively coming from the Left, all the threats of real violence that we&#8217;re seeing here,” Braynard <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/death-threats-leveled-at-justice-for-j6-rally-organizers">told</a> The Washington Examiner.
On January 6, following a pro-Trump rally, a mob swarmed the Capitol as lawmakers and then-Vice President Mike Pence were just beginning to tabulate the 2020 Electoral College vote. Biden defeated then-President Donald Trump by a 306-232 vote in the college.
In a speech before the riot, Trump delivered an hourlong speech in which he said the “emboldened radical-left Democrats” and the media had conspired against him.
“We will never give up. We will never concede. It doesn’t happen. You don’t concede. Our country has had enough. We will not take it anymore,” he declared.
At one point in the speech, pointing toward the Capitol down Constitution Avenue, Trump said: “After this, we’re going to walk down there, and I’ll be there with you, we’re going to walk down … to the Capitol and we are going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women.”
He later wrote on Twitter: “Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!”

Protests Expected In Washington DC Ahead of Inauguration of Joe Biden

Police Planning To Reinstall Fence Around Capitol Before ‘Justice For J6’ Rally: Report

An ordained Presbyterian minister who wanted to conduct a prayer vigil on the United States Capitol Grounds on September 11, the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, is suing the United States Capitol Police board after being denied permission to hold the vigil.
On July 9, Reverend Patrick Mahoney applied for a permit to hold his proposed prayer vigil on the Western Front Lawn on September 11. On August 19, 2021, he was informed that his permit application “could not be processed” because the Western Front Lawn was “closed,” the <a href="https://libertycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/20210831_Mahoney_Doc_1_Verified_Complaint.pdf">lawsuit</a> states.
The Center for American Liberty, which represents Mahoney, stated, “What is abundantly clear is that the Capitol Grounds are not restricted to everyone. Representative Cori Bush and dozens of others protested for days—camping on the steps of the Capitol—demanding the renewal of an eviction moratorium. And that is not all. At least one other permit application was approved and that group held a large protest with a stage, sound equipment, and a significant media presence.”
Mahoney said, “In response to this outrageous violation of the First Amendment and free speech, we have filed a federal lawsuit which will be heard this week. Please join me in prayer: Father, we cry out to you as we realize our freedom and our rights do not come from government, but they come from You. We pray that we will prevail in this lawsuit and that every American, regardless of their beliefs or values, would have the right to freely express them in the public square without government interference or intimidation. Return the People’s House back to the people.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I was denied the right to have a prayer vigil on the grounds of the US Capitol for 9/11. As I walk to church this Sunday, please pray for our federal lawsuit this week. ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/mercedesschlapp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mercedesschlapp</a>⁩ ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/mschlapp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mschlapp</a>⁩ ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/CPAC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CPAC</a>⁩ ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/mark_trammell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mark_trammell</a>⁩ <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreeSpeech?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FreeSpeech</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USCapitol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#USCapitol</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Prayer?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Prayer</a> <a href="https://t.co/O9q2ppGGxZ">pic.twitter.com/O9q2ppGGxZ</a>
&mdash; Rev. Patrick Mahoney (@revmahoney) <a href="https://twitter.com/revmahoney/status/1434513737818464256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 5, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The lawsuit explains:
<blockquote>The Government has devised and operates a permitting scheme under which persons seeking to conduct demonstration activity on the Capitol Grounds in groups of twenty (20) individuals or more must obtain a permit to do so. While the Government has permitted other events on the Capitol Grounds over the past several weeks—including at least one event on the Western Front Lawn—it failed to grant Rev. Mahoney’s permit application to hold his proposed prayer vigil without meaningful explanation, other than to say that area was “closed.” 
This proffered justification is untrue. Although the Western Front Lawn was “closed” after the events of January 6, 2021, the fence enclosing the Western Front Lawn was removed in July 2021. By allowing multiple other demonstrations to proceed while not affording Rev. Mahoney the same opportunity, the Government is discriminating against Rev. Mahoney based on the content of his speech in violation of the First Amendment.
Further, the Government’s permitting regime acts as a prior restraint on speech and is impermissible because the Government has not demonstrated that it applied narrow, objective, and definite criteria to guide its decision not to issue Rev. Mahoney a permit. Indeed, to this day, the Government has not explained how it came to the decision to fail to grant Rev. Mahoney’s permit application. 
Moreover, even taking the Government at its word that the Western Front Lawn is “closed,” if the Government has, in fact, “closed” the Western Front Lawn, it has impermissibly created a no-speech zone around the perimeter of the Capitol, an outcome that is not narrowly tailored to any significant governmental interest. For these reasons too, the Government has violated Rev. Mahoney’s rights to free speech, assembly, and association under the First Amendment.
The Government’s restrictions have specifically and explicitly targeted Rev. Mahoney’s religious and “faith-based” service and are thus not neutral. The Government has prohibited Rev. Mahoney’s religious gathering while allowing non-religious public gatherings.</blockquote>

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Capitol Grounds

Judge Acquits January 6 Defendant: ‘Reasonably Believed’ Capitol Police Let Him In Building

725+ People Have Been Arrested For Jan. 6 Capitol Breach, Most Hit For ‘Entering Or Remaining’ In Capitol

Police Planning To Reinstall Fence Around Capitol Before ‘Justice For J6’ Rally: Report

Christian Minister Denied Holding Prayer Vigil On Capitol Grounds On 9/11, Files Suit