NewCaneywoman charged in D.C. incident
Suspect accused of simple assault after wielding stunweapon during a street argument a day before Capitolwas attacked
A day before the Capitol insurrection, a New Caney woman allegedly threatened with a Taser two people crossing a Washington, D.C., intersection as police officers tried to separate two groups with “opposing political views” that were yelling at each other near Black LivesMatter Plaza, according to court records.
Prosecutors charged Alysia Hargrave, 42, with simple assault in connection to the Jan. 5 incident, which occurred amid First Amendment demonstrations that prompted street closures throughout the nation’s capital, according to authorities and charging documents filed in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
Attempts to contact Hargrave in recent days were unsuccessful.
The filing of charges was the among the first against individuals from the Houston region who were in Washington, D.C., last week.
It’s unclear how many individuals who onWednesday stormed the Capitol were area residents, however none of those charged by federal authorities immediately appeared to be.
Authorities arrested a retired Air Force officer, Larry Rendall Brock Jr., in Texas after being photographed on the Senate floor wearing a vest and helmet and carrying zip ties.
He was charged Sunday in federal court with one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, the Associated Press reported.
On Tuesday, federal authorities said they had opened more than 160 case files over the last six days, which marked “just the tip of the iceberg” as they continued searching for people and sifting through more than 100,000 pieces of digital media they received after a call- out for tips, videos and pictures.
“The significance of this investigation is not lost on us. This is a 24/7, full-bore, extensive operation into what happened that day,” Steven M. D’Antuono, assistant director in charge of the FBI Washington field office, said at a press conference.
The night before the insurrection, trying to prevent violence from erupting, Metropolitan Police Department officers had just established a barrier around 6: 30 p.m. between the groups when they heard “the distinct sound of a stun gun ‘crackling’” while standing in a line parting the crowd, records show.
They saw Hargrave standing at the intersection of 16th and I Streets NW, holding a pink flashlight-Taser.
One of the two victims of the alleged crimetold an investigator they had been walking in the intersection when they observed Hargrave standing on the west side of the intersection, yelling vulgarities at them.
When the two were about 15 feet away from Hargrave, the individual told authorities, she raised her hand and brandished the stun gun. The victim said they heard the Taser go off and saw a flash.
Authorities arrested Hargrave on suspicion of possessing a prohibited weapon and simple assault.
While talking to an officer at the scene, a detective asked about the circumstances of the arrest when, according to the charging document, Hargrave “spontaneously uttered ‘I had it for self-defense.’”
Hargrave declined to be interviewed by two detectives upon being read her Miranda rights.
The two victims could not be reached for comment.
Court records do not list an attorney representing Hargrave. She is scheduled to be arraigned June 8.
A Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson, Alaina Gertz, confirmed the arrest was in connection to First Amendment demonstrations that occurred throughout the day in the district.
Authorities do not release crowd size estimates, Gertz said, adding they did not have more details to share.
Images posted on socialmedia and taken by photojournalists show crowds of varying sizes throughout the day. In some, there are hundreds of people, Trump hats and flags. In pictures and videos taken once the sun had set, dozens of police officers in highlighter yellow jackets stand between two groups of people at Black Live Matter Plaza outside of the White House.