Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
Prosecutors: Proud Boys spearheaded attack
Defense attorneys say no Jan. 6 plot existed
Leaders of the right-wing Proud Boys dubbed “Lords of War” agreed to “use any means necessary” in their violent 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, which they hoped would prevent Joe Biden from becoming president, a prosecutor told jurors Thursday.
“These ‘Lords of War’ joined together to stop the transfer of presidential power” and keep Donald Trump in the White House though he had lost the election, Justice Department attorney Jason Mccullough said during opening statements in the seditious conspiracy trial of five Proud Boys, including former chairman of the group, Enrique Tarrio.
According to the government, the defendants helped spearhead the attack on Jan. 6, 2021, when Trump supporters sought to prevent Congress from certifying the 2020 election results. During the riot, 140 police officers were assaulted and the attackers caused more than $2 million in property damage.
The Proud Boys were part of “every critical breach” on the day of the attack on the Capitol building, “from the first street barriers, up the concrete steps and through the window,” Mccullough said.
Defense attorneys argued on Thursday that the evidence would show there was no plan by their clients to stop the transfer of power.
More than 950 people have been arrested in connection with the attack, but only a handful were accused of seditious conspiracy for using violence to oppose federal government authority or hinder execution of U.S. laws. Two leaders of the far-right Oath Keepers group were convicted of the charge in November.
Tarrio, Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl and Dominic Pezzola have pleaded not guilty to the charges, including obstruction of an official proceeding, destruction of government property and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers.
Tarrio’s attorney, Sabino Jauregui, told jurors his client sought to avoid violence, that there was no evidence showing Tarrio planned or incited the riot that day, and that the government had taken comments by the Proud Boys out of context.
Jauregui said it was Trump who “unleashed the mob” that breached the Capitol with his fiery speech to supporters that morning. “He’s the one that told them to march over to the Capitol and fight like hell,” the defense lawyer said.
Nicholas Smith, an attorney for Nordean, said witnesses will testify that the former president was the “prime mover who whipped up the crowd” with his speech.
The defense lawyer said evidence from a government informant shows the Proud Boys weren’t to blame for the breach of Capitol barriers, but rather a “herd mentality” among protesters. Smith said none of the defendants is proud of what happened on Jan. 6, which he called a “historic embarrassment” for the country.
The government has alleged that four of the defendants entered the building, while Tarrio communicated with them and praised what transpired in a social media post. “Proud Of My Boys and my country,” he wrote. Tarrio was forced to depart Washington before the riot, after he was arrested for stealing and burning a #BLACKLIVESMATTER banner from a Washington church on a separate visit.
Tarrio has denied the government’s allegations, explaining that he alerted Metropolitan Police officer Shane Lamond to the group’s plans, which included attending Trump’s speech, protesting the election results and partying that night, according to a defense filing.
Defense lawyers had sought to move the trial out of Washington, but U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly refused.