Proud Boys leader ordered to jail while awaiting trial
The Ormond Beach man accused of helping plan the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol along with other leaders of the far-right extremist group the Proud Boys was ordered Monday to be detained in jail while awaiting trial in the federal conspiracy case.
A federal judge found that Joseph Randall Biggs, along with his co-defendant Ethan Nordean, of Washington, should be jailed as the case against them moves forward, finding no pretrial release conditions could stop the men from leading, planning or organizing another such event like the attempted insurrection at the Capitol. The attack by pro-Trump extremists, which prosecutors allege Biggs and Nordean helped plan, tried to interfere with the Electoral College vote to confirm President Joe Biden’s victory. At least five people, including a Capitol police officer, died in the riot.
“It’s no exaggeration to say, the rule
of law, the durability of our constitutional order, and in the end, the very existence of our republic is threatened by such conduct,” U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, of D.C.’s circuit, said Monday in a virtual hearing. “Given the nature of the charges, the evidence of leadership, prior planning, coordination with other participants, … the nature of the circumstances weigh, in my view, in favor of detention.”
Kelly said the “evidence is overwhelming” that Biggs and Nordean had a plan for the day of the Capitol riot, even if details were not yet specific, and later said that their “threat must be considered in context.”
The judge sided with prosecutors, who had argued that both Biggs and Nordean were a threat because they had the ability to plan such an attack, even while on home confinement, through the internet and because of their known network with Proud Boys, a designated hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, as well as other sympathizers.
Attorneys for the men had argued against detention, pointing out that neither were accused of any violent acts themselves on the day of the riot and noting they had been meeting all their conditions of pretrial release for weeks.
Biggs, 37, was first arrested Jan. 20 on a federal felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding before Congress, as well as two misdemeanors: entering a restricted building and illegally entering Congress to disrupt official business, after he was spotted in photos and videos among those who stormed the Capitol. After that arrest, prosecutors had not requested his pretrial detention, but a magistrate judge still issued stringent pretrial release conditions, including location monitoring, home confinement and no firearm possessions.
But about two months after his initial arrest, a D.C. grand jury indicted him on new, more-serious charges that alleged he helped plan the attack, encouraging other Proud Boys members to travel to D.C., raising funds for travel expenses and obtaining “paramilitary gear and supplies — including tactical vests, protective equipment and radio equipment,” the indictment said. Biggs faces the conspiracy charges along with Nordean, known as “Rufio Panman,” and two other Proud Boys leaders: Zachary Rehl, of
“It’s no exaggeration to say, the rule of law, the durability of our constitutional order, and in the end, the very existence of our republic is threatened by such conduct. Given the nature of the charges, the evidence of leadership, prior planning, coordination with other participants, … the nature of the circumstances weigh, in my view, in favor of detention.”
Timothy Kelly, U.S. district judge
Philadelphia and Charles Donohoe, from Kernersville, N.C. Federal prosecutors have sought pretrial detention for Rehl and Donohoe.
Kelly cited many of Biggs’ and Nordean’s posts and statements shared on social media, as well as from encrypted messaging applications in his ruling Monday, including posts before Jan. 6 where Biggs called for “war” or where Nordean asked for local militias to contact him. Kelly also mentioned how Nordean was captured on video invoking the “spirit of 1776 on a bullhorn while approaching the Capitol.
And while he agreed with the defense that Biggs and Nordean were not personally accused of engaging in violence — as most of the other people charged in the riot and detained pretrial had been — he said they were still charged with “aiding and abetting” such violence, and said their role in the event was considered a “federal crime of terrorism,” making it a much more severe case.
In the almost two-hour hearing, Kelly also said he found that the video from prosecutors did not explicitly show Biggs or Nordean pushing down the metal barricades near the steps of the Capitol, but said they were clearly positioned right up against the fence in front of the large crowd.
“They are clearly happy about law enforcement becoming overwhelmed and the mob pressing forward,” Kelly said. In his decision to detain the men, he also noted that neither had shown any “regret or remorse for what they did or what happened that day.”
He said he was concerned that Biggs’ role as an organizer for the Proud Boys, and Nordean’s national and local leadership for the group, meant “these individuals can produce events that draw large numbers of people,” which have previously spawned violence against civilians and law enforcement.
“At the end of the day, I don’t think even the most stringent [pretrial release conditions] suffices,” Kelly said.
He also pointed out that many of the allegations “involve taking steps to conceal communications” from law enforcement, like using encrypted applications or deleting messages, and that Biggs had previously lied to the FBI about entering the Capitol during the riot.
Kelly ordered the men to turn themselves into federal pretrial services, but it wasn’t immediately clear how soon they would be jailed.
Attorneys for Nordean tried to negotiate with the judge, offering conditions to remove all electronics from his home as well as warrantless searches of his home at any time, but Kelly did not waver.
Attorneys for both Biggs and Nordean requested a temporary stay on the detention order until a possible review or appeal, but Kelly also denied that request.
In a recent filing in the case, Biggs’ attorney argued that Biggs did not “plan in advance to enter the Capitol. That was not part of any Proud Boy plan.”
J. Daniel Hull, Biggs’ attorney, declined to comment further on the ruling.