Contradictory portrait of riot suspect emerges

Government lawyers call Ridgefield man ‘violent,’ friends call him a ‘gentleman’

In the weeks since Patrick Edward McCaughey III was arrested for his involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, few details about this Connecticut man’s personal life or background were known. The 23-year-old, who was caught on camera as part of the mob trying to breach the building, was charged with assaulting two Capitol police officers with a dangerous weapon, among additional charges.

Government lawyers called him “violent” and asked the court not to release him on bond, stating that he remains a “danger to the community,” a flight risk and that evidence against McCaughey is “strong and compelling.” They also argue that there are “no conditions or combinations of conditions” that can ensure the safety of any “person and the community” while also ensuring he appears in future court proceedings.

Now, as friends and family push for McCaughey’s release, a new, contradictory picture emerges. Here, two Patrick McCaugheys appear: the one who allegedly crushed a police officer between two doors with a stolen riot shield, and Pat, the young man who quietly helps his community and never got in trouble.

Eight character letters from friends and employers express surprise regarding any involvement at the Capitol. McCaughey — Pat — is described as a respectful, hardworking young man, a “gentleman” who did work on neighbors houses, volunteered for community events, worked consistently for the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra, and loved his now-deceased cat, Gracie. The letters, filed in court this week, are part of a push to get McCaughey released from custody. A bond hearing is scheduled for Friday at 3 p.m.

Several letters described him as kind and thoughtful. He was a person who came to the rescue of two neighbors whose car broke down on a 100-degree day and made friends with another neighbor’s elderly dog.

“I believe that he was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” wrote Felicia Clem, who said she’s known McCaughey for six years and worked with him at a local nonprofit.

“Pat does not belong in jail,” wrote neighbors Mary and John Griffin.

“I was both troubled and surprised to hear about his recent case as it seemed the antithesis to Patrick’s demeanor,” wrote another neighbor, Jane Marie Grassi. McCaughey had been a “good friend” to Grassi’s son and a dog-sitter over the 15 years they’ve known him, she said.

The letters come as he faces a series of charges including two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding, engaging in physical violence, disorderly and disruptive conduct, among others.

The letters not only serve as character references, but also paint a more intimate portrait of McCaughey’s life. As a dual citizen of Germany and the U.S., he enjoyed German dinners on Christmas Eve with his family, “had a gentle bond” with his mother, and liked to cook. He often worked alongside his father, also named Patrick McCaughey, doing manual labor. Together, they worked on several projects for New Canaan Forge, LLC. At least two neighbors said that he worked on their houses or did odd jobs for them in the past. And from the fall of 2013 until May of 2018, he worked for Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra.

“I cannot imagine what brought him to be involved in this event,” wrote Catherine Hazlehurst, McCaughey’s supervisor at the symphony. “This is not the character of the young man I got to know and who I still believe him to be. There is so much good in him.”

Hazlehurst went on to say that McCaughey stood out among other workers and was responsible “beyond his years.” She considered recommending that he take over her job as concert manager if she stepped down.

By all accounts, this is a different picture from the one portrayed in videos of the event and in the government’s legal filings. |

Government lawyers say that McCaughey voluntarily joined the mob — entering the West Terrace Tunnel at 2:49 p.m., leaving, and then returning at 3:05p.m. — and that there was “no evidence that McCaughey was pushed into the tunnel by others, that his move toward the front to physically engage the police line was compelled by others, or that he tried to turn back from the mob.”

Prosecutors also allege he said several things to the officers that were caught on camera including: “Come on man, you’re going to get squished just go home,” “Just go home,” “Don’t try and use that stick on me boy,” and “Get out of our house.” They add that he was aware of the aggressive situation in the tunnel — as evidenced by the fact he was there, left, and then returned again.

McCaughey’s lawyer, however, wrote that he had “heretofore lived a spotless existence” and simply “decided to do a most American thing — to protest and petition his government for redress for what he and millions of other Americans perceive to be legitimate grievances about the Presidential Election.”

The proposal from McCaughey’s lawyer for release would be a real estate bond for his father’s New York house which carries a value of about $450,000, in addition to surety bonds in the amount of $250,000. McCaughey’s father would also be willing to post an additional $150,000 surety bond, according to the proposal, and accept a lien in favor of the government on a property he owns in Maine worth about $150,000. McCaughey would be willing to wear a GPS tracking device, seek and obtain employment right away, surrender any passport in his name and limit his travel to Connecticut and the Southern District of New York.

Still, prosecutors argue that McCaughey’s dual citizenship makes him a flight risk and that he remains a danger to the public.

“He knew what was going on inside and could have chosen not to contribute to the violence taking place inside the tunnel. Instead, he chose to return and to fight,” legal filings stated.

At one point, the McCaughey described by friends appeared to emerge as he assisted one of the officers he had been engaged with.

“This moment of humanity — or regret — was another opportunity for McCaughey to stop and to walk away from the violence that day. Again, he chose not to,” government lawyers said.