When you map the hometowns of defendants in the US Capitol attack, there's a big fat circle over Central & Western New York. And those New Yorkers are involved in the higher-level cases
(QUICK THREAD)
Thomas Sibick of Buffalo-area is accused of assaulting DC Police Officer Michael Fanone.. and stealing his radio & badge (and of burying the badge in his backyard in NY)
He's pleaded not guilty and a judge on Friday rejected Sibick's request for release from DC jail
Maryann & Rafael Rondon of Watertown were charged in Syracuse federal court. They're accused of helping someone in mob take a laptop computer from Nancy Pelosi's office suite.... and of stealing escape hoods from US Senate. Rondon also faces charge for shotgun in his home
Matthew Greene is an accused Proud Boy from Syracuse, NY. He's pleaded not guilty in Jan 6 case.
He's charged w/ conspiracy, accused of charging toward Capitol, crossing barriers and using radio w/ earpiece. Higher-level case
Albert Ciarpelli of Syracuse allegedly drove to DC on I-81 on Jan 5, he's accused of being near QAnon Shaman, others who were outside US Senate on Jan 6.. while taking pics on his phone. Lower-level charges. Court appearance Monday was just delayed. No plea entered per docket
Domenic Pezzola of Rochester, NY-area is in pretrial detention in DC jail. He's pleaded not guilty, accused of smashing open US Capitol window with a police riot shield
Eric Bochene of Hartford, NY had entered not guilty plea before/while seeking to represent himself as defense lawyer in case.. and filed this unique motion seeking fee structure from court. Charging $75,000/hour for legal services and $50 million each for blood or urine samples
Syracuse FBI agent investigated case of Jan 6 defendant Richard Watrous of NY. Lower-level charges. He's accused of being unlawfully on grounds... inside Capitol for 5 minutes. Feds allege Watrous saw a man take off w/ bottle of booze while saying, "I got Nancy Pelosi’s wine"
Geographically .... Central & Western NY are reasonably close to DC. I've done the drive 100 times... it's 6 hours south along I-81. But the cluster of cases is noteworthy and some of the accusations or details are unique
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NEW: 80 cosponsors to US House bill seeking impeachment of Kristi Noem
Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL)
Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN)
Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN)
Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-IL)
Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL)
Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL)
Rep. Y. Clark (D-NY)
(MORE)
Rep. Juan Vargas (D-CA)
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)
Rep. Eric Sorensen (D-IL)
Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA)
Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL)
Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-NM)
Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY)
Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY)
(MORE)
Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ)
Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA)
Rep. Emily Randall (D-WA)
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA)
Rep. Kevin Mullin (D-CA)
Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL)
Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA)
Rep. Dave Min (D-CA)
Rep. John Larson (D-CT)
Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE)
FLASH: Sen Thom Tillis (R-NC) is on Senate floor and he's about to make a motion for "unanimous consent" to expedite the hanging of the January 6th plaque at the Capitol
To honor the police heroes
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) speaks first: "In 2022, we passed a law .. saying we'd hang this plaque"
"I'm here to team up with my colleague from North Carolina to have a strategy to make sure we *do* have this plaque up"
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) is now speaking. He recalls that he was on floor in Senate chamber on Jan 6.
Tillis says prior law requiring Jan 6 plaque had a "technical" issue that requires clarity. He says issue can be quickly cured
Some pardoned rioters are retracing their march from the Ellipse to the Capitol
Some victims are part of a 10am hearing organized by House Democrats
And: Anger, toxicity and confrontation continue to define Jan 6. Still.
Poltico Playbook on Jan 6 just now:
“Today D.C., and much of America, is deeply divided about what happened.
That lack of consensus represents a triumph, of sorts, for Donald Trump, and stands as testament to his unmatched ability both to reshape political narratives and to carry his supporters to extraordinary positions”
Injured DC police officer Dan Hodges says the Jan 6 denialism remains rampant
“Everything on January 6 occurred exactly as it appeared to. There’s no conspiracy here, there’s no, it wasn’t a “Fed-surrection”
NEW: House Speaker Mike Johnson – after two years of deflecting questions on the matter – is now arguing that the legally-required January 6 plaque must be re-considered
(more)
In a statement tonight, a spokesperson for Speaker Johnson says:
"As written, the statute authorizing this plaque is not implementable, and proposed alternatives devised by Democrat House staff, not members, also do not comply with the statute. If Democrats are serious about commemorating the work of USCP officers, they are free to work with the appropriate committees of jurisdiction to develop a framework for proper vetting and consideration, just as the House does for Congressional Gold Medals, commemorative gold coins, and similar ceremonial responsibilities”
Federal law required the Jan 6 plaque to be hung on Capitol grounds by March 2023