Thread by @DefenseBaron

Hi. I just sentenced a child molester to prison today.

So, since last Tuesday I've been on jury duty, as you may recall. I experienced the Capitol mob riot story a little differently, in fits and starts as I checked my phone between judge's recesses in courthouse. /1

Last week, we heard graphic testimony by a 17-year old girl alleging how her mom's boyfriend (her de facto father from age 2) raped and touched her from age 10 to 13. Our 12-person jury convicted him of two counts of aggravated sexual battery, and sentenced him today.

We were just the 4th jury trial in Fairfax Co., Va., since COVID. They're adjusting courtroom procedures for safety, which is why this trial went on longer than usual. My utmost respect to the officers of the court who hear this kind of thing regularly, and are trying to work.

Needless to say, to go from hearing the quiet, tear-filled testimony of a child about her sexual molestation... to the scenes of violent, loud, rage-filled angry mob at the Capitol Bldg... was difficult.

But it was a stark reminder of the America that exists far from the one shown through the narrow, hyper-focused lens of 24/7 political news headlines. Life is going on, far from Trump rallies. Like in jury trials, county courthouses with immigrant families, judges, and deputies.

But we all have jobs to do, and this one is mine. Now, I'm gonna try to get back in the game, catch up and wrap my head around all of the storylines pouring out of the Capitol riot, especially as related to national security and domestic extremism.

When @DefenseOne was conceived, it was on the premise that every agency defending the US and represented in this photo on the left of the Situation Room during the 2010 Osama bin Laden raid, needed better, smarter, deeper news coverage. We never imagined the scene on the right.

Back to work.

JUST POSTED: It's Harder to Boot Right-Wing Extremists from Social Media Than ISIS
defenseone.com/threats/2021/0…

Sorry, I meant the 2011 OBL raid.