Assault on the Capitol (DC)

[SuzieC]

Gotta wonder what's in plea offers

That's easy, felony conviction, no more gunz. They can't function without their sex toys.

They may also be diehard Trump followers and welcome the chance to prove in court that they did nothing wrong and that Trump actually won the election.

I wonder; if they or others go to trial and hope to convince the world that they are right, they or their lawyers will surely attempt to pack the jury with TFG true-believers. They will hope for, at least, a hung jury.

The prosecution will, of course, try to prevent this. My question for the IAAL's here is this: If the prosecutors ask a potential juror if they believe that TFG won the election and they answer "yes", is that grounds to dismiss the juror?

In any event, jury selection is going to be interesting.

Keep in mind that Trump received, I think, 4% of the vote in DC. It's going to be tough to find die hard Trump supporters to put on the jury.

[noblepa]

My question for the IAAL's here is this: If the prosecutors ask a potential juror if they believe that TFG won the election and they answer "yes", is that grounds to dismiss the juror?

There are two kinds of potential juror dismissals: for-cause and peremptory.

Prospective jurors can be asked almost anything, and many questions do seek information that may shed light on other beliefs. (A popular example would be asking if a potential juror is an NRA member, as that's a good indicator of other values.) So I would not be surprised if the election results are explored during voir dire.

As for dismissal, for-cause dismissals are "free," i.e., a party can request as many as they desire; the judge could grant as many as the circumstances warrant.

But any potential juror who expresses disagreement with the election results will almost certainly be asked follow-up questions like, "Regardless of your beliefs about the election, could you set that aside and judge this only on the evidence from the trial?" (This is counsel coaxing the potential juror to say yes.)

Even if the potential juror says yes, however, there can still be a motion for a for-cause dismissal. And the parties will argue intangibles like credibility and body language. The judge may (and likely will) make rulings like, "Based on the juror's tone of voice and lack of eye contact, I find the juror would not be able to judge the case based only on the facts; that juror is excused."

If there's no follow-up questions, the court would most likely deny a for-cause dismissal, as there's no evidence the potential juror couldn't serve. The prosecutor could argue that the refusal to accept the election results is tantamount to also refusing to accept the judge's authority, but I'd be surprised if a judge would buy into that.


Peremptory challenges can be made for (almost) any reason, but each party only gets a finite number of them.

The challenges could be used in tandem, i.e., move for a for-causes dismissal, but if that's denied, then exercise a peremptory challenge.

Thanks. I was referring to for-cause challenges.

I imagine that, when they get to jury selection, there will be a questionaire that prospective jurors will be required to fill out, and those questions will be asked.

[Kendra]

https://www.nbcwashington.com/investiga ... n/2775341/

DC Tunnel History Site Flagged Suspicious Activity Before Capitol Insurrection
Web traffic to WashingtonTunnels.com was so unusually high starting on Jan. 1 that the site’s operator notified the FBI

[filly]

https://www.nbcwashington.com/investiga ... n/2775341/

DC Tunnel History Site Flagged Suspicious Activity Before Capitol Insurrection
Web traffic to WashingtonTunnels.com was so unusually high starting on Jan. 1 that the site’s operator notified the FBI

Traffic on the website is usually limited to visitors and referrals from people in D.C. and in nearby communities in Virginia and Maryland, Carter said. But starting on New Year’s Day, a spike in traffic included visitors nationwide. He said a deeper review of analytics from his site revealed many of the clicks were coming from hyperlinks shared on anonymous message boards, sites and forums named after militias or firearms, or using Donald Trump’s name.

[Kendra]

Shirley just a random coincidence /s

[tek]

Just tourists planning their travels!

[Kendra]

Just tourists planning their travels!

Of course.

[bill_g]

Cross post -
Surprise - An insurrectionist from MI is protesting a school board meeting in Brevard Co FL.

[Kendra]

We are extremely good at what we do, our small group has spent thousands of hours on research. Yet only 4 hours before a court hearing for a plea deal for Robert Reeder do we find the assault. This truly is a massive undertaking! Did we make it in time? #WeHope

[Kendra]

Also flagging this:

In two Jan 6 misdemeanor cases today - feds have specified the defendants were not "tourists" that day.

The words of Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga) continue to have an impact on defendants

[Slim Cognito]

Karma, you magnificent bitch.

[Kendra]

Should be an interesting hearing.

[Kendra]

Holy smokes, even more footage! Robert Reeder’s misdemeanor plea deal still allows prosecutors to charge Robert Reeder with crimes of violence if they discover new evidence. Another incredible find that the feds missed.

[filly]

These hearings really should be televised. If you can watch a Zoom hearing you should be able to watch a courtroom hearing. I've never liked the ban on cameras.

[Kendra]

[RTH10260]

https:// twitter.com/SeditionHunters/status/1428001852428374016

We are extremely good at what we do, our small group has spent thousands of hours on research. Yet only 4 hours before a court hearing for a plea deal for Robert Reeder do we find the assault. This truly is a massive undertaking! Did we make it in time? #WeHope

On what would seem to be a Russian TV channel reporting on the coup

[Kendra]

https://mobile.twitter.com/ryanjreilly

Showtime!

[Kendra]

Watch your Facebook tags.
The feds arrested Missouri man Zach Wilson in Feb. for breaching the Capitol. He told the FBI his wife Kelsey was w/him on Jan. 6 but didn't go inside.
Then they noticed the tag on one of FB pics: "Zach Wilson is w/Kelsey Wilson."
Now she's charged too.

[Kendra]

Grand jury returned an indictment against Samuel Lazar. Unsealed today. Next hearing set for Aug. 31. #FacePaintBlowHard https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap ... 1.16.0.pdf

[noblepa]

Jenna Ryan, the Texas Real Estate agent who said Trump should pardon her for her role in the January 6 coup attempt, has pleaded guilty.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/19/politics ... index.html

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/8 ... t-arrested

Moar info on Sedition Hunters.

Sedition Hunters info leads to arrest of Michigan bodybuilder for assault on Capitol officer

It's true what they say: What you post on the Internet stays on the Internet. Months after police announced they were searching for an unknown man photographed dragging a police officer down a set of stairs during the U.S. Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, the man was identified through posts on social media. Identified as Logan Barnhart, the Michigan man was arrested by the FBI Tuesday, HuffPost reported.

Dubbed #CatSweat online and referenced by the FBI as Capitol suspect 128-AFO, Barnhart was wanted for assault after dragging a D.C. Metropolitan Police officer down a set of stairs. The Sedition Hunters gave him the nickname “CatSweat” because he was wearing a sweatshirt branded with the name of Caterpillar shortened as “CAT.” Barnhart was arrested after members of the Sedition Hunters community used Instagram photos to identify him.

HuffPost noted that Barnhart was deemed the “white whale” of the Sedition Hunters’ community for months, one of the first rioters captured on camera that the community worked to identify.

Barnhart’s identity was revealed when members of the online community found a clear image of his face from a photo of the crowd that gathered at the "Save America" rally, which occurred moments before the attack. By plugging his face into a reverse image search, online community members were then able to uncover him on several bodybuilder sites in Michigan and identify his name. This ultimately led them to find his Instagram account, which featured images of him wearing the same outfit he wore on Jan. 6.

[bob]

Ryan (in March):

Sadly, she's (essentially) correct.

Cf.:

[Volkonski]

[Kendra]

Court will again attempt to have hearing this morning in Jan 6 case of Landon Copeland. Copeland is Army veteran accused of assaulting police

Logistical problems and Copeland outbursts have delayed prior hearings

(more)

[Maybenaut]

Another one jailed pending trial…

And.... a judge has just ordered Thomas Ballard jailed in pretrial detention pending trial