Thread by @ZoeTillman

Switching from the Jan. 6 hearing to a plea hearing for two Jan. 6 defendants, Lori and Thomas Vinson. Could hear someone else on the line listening to Officer Hodges testify as the line gets muted/unmuted before the hearing starts

This is before Judge Reggie Walton. Here's the charging docs for the Vinsons: s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2049…

Feds note Lori Vinson told an interviewer: "people have asked are you sorry that you done that, absolutely I am not, I am not sorry for that, I would do it again tomorrow"

A common theme we've seen in misdemeanor cases like the Vinsons is this idea that they didn't encounter police telling them they couldn't go inside the Capitol. The officers appearing before Congress now are describing how they were outnumbered/overwhelmed by the violent mob

The Vinsons are pleading guilty to one count of Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building, the same misdemeanor we've seen in most of the plea deals so far — it carries a max sentence of 6 mos in jail

This is another wired plea deal, which means both Vinsons had to take it

Walton is going over the various factors he'll consider in deciding on a sentence for the Vinsons, including sending a message to others that this type of conduct is "reprehensible" and cannot be tolerated (this isn't the sentencing hearing, he's speaking to the future)

Vinson plea hearing just took a twist: Govt isn't asking for detention pending sentencing, but Walton says he has concerns — this was an "atrocious act" against our democracy, and if they were "gullible enough" to believe postelection lies, what's to say they won't do it again?

Walton also alludes to Lori Vinson's media interviews immediately after Jan. 6 where she discussed her willingness to do something similar again (see earlier in the thread)

Thomas Vinson's defense lawyer says his client is repentent and has been fully cooperative with the govt since Jan. 6, notes that they're among the early plea deals, reflecting what the govt has acknowledged, that they're not accused of any violence/destruction at the Capitol

Thomas Vinson tells the judge that when they got home from DC, they learned that the FBI was already looking for them and agents had left a card, and they immediately called the FBI and provided cooperation

Lori Vinson's lawyer says her client made statements expressing lack of remorse in response to being upset about her job, and since then has made clear she has no plans to participate in anything like Jan. 6 again. Lori Vinson echoes that.

Walton is not going to place the Vinsons in custody pending sentencing, but uses this moment to make clear where he's at: "It's nonetheless very troubling to me that a group of Americans would do what happened on that day... It made us an embarrassment"

Walton continues: "I teach in various countries, and I'm always touting the greatness of America, and it's going to be difficult for me to convince people in other parts of the world that we are that shining light on the hill in light of what happened that day."

Jan. 6 should be an embarrassment to every American, Walton says, and indicates he's inclined to fashion a sentence for the Vinsons that's stiffer than what they may be hoping for — if not jail, some kind of monetary punishment, he says

Walton to the Vinsons: "While you all didn't maybe engage in any type of violence or destruction, you were part of the mob mentality that caused this to occur"

Since the govt wasn't seeking detention and the Vinsons had already been on pretrial release, it was unlikely Walton would order detention now, but he used this moment to push the Vinsons to explain themselves and shed light on how he's thinking about this heading into sentencing

Sentencing for the Vinsons is set for Oct. 22, that's a wrap on that one