Thread by @JordanOnRecord

Good morning all. We're back on Day 2 of jury selection for Guy Reffitt, the first #CapitolRiot defendant to go to trial. Expected to see opening arguments and potentially the first witness testimony later today. Here's what's happened so far: wusa9.com/article/news/n…

Ok, we're getting started. Judge Friedrich says there are 24 jurors qualified so far. They're aiming for 37 total before they start peremptory challenges.

DOJ says they're willing to let the juror who had a questionable residency status go. Welch had challenged her.

DOJ wants to re-question this juror after learning the podcast she listened to expressed the view that the #CapitolRiot was a false flag. Judge Friedrich says no. Other jurors are waiting. Just peremptory strike her.

https://twitter.com/JordanOnRecord/status/1498345961269116931

First juror up says she was in San Francisco at her parents' home on Jan. 6. She doesn't really seem to have followed the story much at all. Says it's important to hear both sides.

Juror says she was recently the victim of identity theft. Suspect was arrested. Case is being prosecuted in New Jersey.

DOJ questioning her about her statement that people were "drawn in" on January 6. She says "some people were probably misled."

She's very soft-spoken and she's leaning away from the mic. Says she "knows enough not to take everything in front of me, on TV, at face value."

Juror says she remembers Mayor Bowser called for National Guard support but they "ignored her calls" — which isn't exactly correct. They responded, but DoD had to give approval, which didn't come for hours.

Judge Friedrich warns AUSA Risa Berkower to avoid leading questions and to quit telling jurors she's going to "order" them to follow the law. Says they will be "instructed" to do so.

Next juror up says he remembers seeing photos of "the shaman" and the guy with his feet up on Speaker Pelosi's desk. He describes the #CapitolRiot as "horrific to watch." Says he was two miles away on Jan. 6.

Juror says Reffitt's participation in the #CapitolRiot "makes me concerned," but he feels he could review evidence in an unbiased way.

Juror says he participated in the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020 and saw police officers commit crimes against protestors, including him. "But I believe those are completely different from the ones on January 6," he says.

Juror was in Lafayette Square on June 1 when he and other protestors were forcibly cleared by law enforcement. My colleague @NathanBacaTV (here w/ me today) and I have done a lot of reporting on the police response to those protests back in 2020. wusa9.com/article/news/i…

Juror says he thinks there are systemic issues in policing, but that what he experienced on June 1, 2020, and what happened on Jan. 6, 2021, are completely different.

Welch asks if juror has negative views about people who disagree with Black Lives Matter protests (which Reffitt certainly does). Juror says he would think they didn't know all the facts. But also says he thinks he could review the actions they took w/o considering their views.

Juror says he would find disagreement w/ Black Lives Matter "offensive."

"So you're saying you can set aside your beliefs and feelings, and just judge the conduct of that person, even if their views upset you?" Welch asks.

"Yes," the juror says.

Welch does not ask to strike.

Next juror up says she knows defense attorney Elita Amato, who represented #CapitolRiot defendants Mariposa Castro and Rasha Abual-Ragheb. But says Amato has never told her anything about the case, and she doesn't even know who she represents.

Juror tells Berkower she's confident she could set aside her opinions and judge the case fairly. Welch does not move to strike.

Juror 0442 says she's served as a juror "plenty of times" before, including in the D.C. District Court. Both criminal and civil cases.

Juror 0442 says she's concerned about "facial recognition" in this case, but which it appears she means being identified as a juror in this high-profile case.

Juror 0442 is over 70 and is not compelled to serve. Once Judge Friedrich points that out, she says she'd rather not serve and is excused.

There have been multiple jurors who are over 70 and know they can opt out, and who also don't seem to want to serve on this case, but who also went all the way to individual questioning before opting out. Maybe they just didn't have anything else to do?

Next juror up says she doesn't like firearms. Reffitt is facing two firearms-related charges (civil disorder and entering/remaining). Says she thinks she could put aside her views and fairly judge the case. Judge Friedrich notes that most people have personal views on firearms.

"Would the fact that you have a personal view on firearms impact your perception of the defendant in this case?" Judge Friedrich asks.

"Yes," juror says.

Judge Friedrich pushes her further and she says she thinks she could be fair. Welch doesn't move to strike.

Next juror up says he doesn't watch the news a lot.

"It makes me depressed," he says. Big mood.

This juror is very difficult to hear, but he said there have always been protests and moments of conflict in American history. Said, though, he wouldn't compare it to the civil rights marches in the 60s.

Next juror up says she's in early pregnancy. Has doctor appointments on Wednesday and Thursday. Is also experiencing a lot of nausea. Judge Friedrich asks if she can possibly get the appointments scheduled for earlier or later in the day.

Welch moves to strike her due to her upcoming medical appointments and statements she made about having difficulty being fair. DOJ says it's not about whether it's difficult, but whether it's possible. Judge Friedrich says it's a close call. Will wait for appointment info.

Next juror up says she initially thought what she saw was people "exercising their right to disagree." Thought the TV was exaggerating what happened. Says she eventually drew a distinction between "the people on the Mall and the people actually climbing the walls of the Capitol."

Juror references photo of Adam Johnson carrying off the Speaker's Podium. He was just sentenced to 75 days behind bars last week. wusa9.com/article/news/n…

We've got two or three more jurors left from the first group. Then the court will take a break before starting general questioning of group two.

Juror 1484 says as soon as he heard this was a #CapitolRiot case "I heard guilty in my head." Mentions reading about the QAnon conspiracy. Reffitt is not a QAnon guy. Says his mother is Jewish and the QAnon people really don't like her.

Adds that he had a hard time focusing on Judge Friedrich's questions as soon as he heard what the case was about because he was so uncomfortable being in the courtroom with Reffitt.

No objections to striking him for cause.

Next juror up is a Senate woodcrafter employed by the Architect of the Capitol. He has only been with the office for 5 months (not there on January 6). Says he hasn't followed coverage of the #CapitolRiot closely. Recalls "the man with the headpiece."

Juror says he has not been involved in any work repairing damage from the riot. Has not talked to anyone in his office who was in the building on January 6. Only specific article he can remember was about the lumber sourced for repairing the Capitol.

Juror says he's leaving his job at the Capitol soon because it's not for him.

No motions to strike the woodworker.

Next juror up, the final from the first pool, claims she doesn't feel comfortable serving on any jury, civil or criminal. Says she believes it poses a risk to her and her family. Judge Friedrich asks if she understands it's her civic duty.

"I was told when I was younger your civic duty might be to serve on a jury," juror says.

"But you're unwilling to fulfill that duty?" Judge Friedrich asks.

"Yes, I'm uncomfortable," juror says.

Juror's story is shifting now. At first, said her concern wasn't anything to do with the actual jury process. Now says she wouldn't feel comfortable having someone's freedom in her hands. Says she's nervous about being in court.

Juror now says a close friend recently mentioned the Reffitt case and told her, "His a** needs to go to jail."

Juror now talking about the "street code." Says if you bring a firearm somewhere, you're intending to use it.

Welch asks if her friend would be mad if she voted to acquit Reffitt. She says he wouldn't try to hurt her, but "he would be pissed."

DOJ moves to strike.

Friedrich says initially she thought juror was just trying to avoid service, but thinks there are actual issues. Struck.

Court is going to take a short break now and then start general questioning of the second group of jurors. Judge Friedrich says we now have 32 qualified jurors. Need to get to 37.

Per this morning's pool reporter, @ZoeTillman, the juror who had pregnancy appointments has been struck. General questioning of the second juror pool is ongoing now. Need somewhere between 4-6 more jurors qualified to move on. 38 prospective jurors in this second group.

Guy Reffitt's attorney, William Welch, really has not been especially aggressive on trying to strike for cause. All but one strike so far has been at his request, but even a few folks who expressed negative feelings about guns he didn't challenge.

Individual questioning is picking back up. The number we're aiming for keeps changing. Judge Friedrich said 36 earlier, now she says 38. That means we may need 7 more qualified from this pool of 38.

Getting a look at what DOJ's open statement will look like. Will include oral and written statements Guy Reffitt made to family members, another militia member ("R.H.") and on the GoPro camera he wore on January 6.

Judge Friedrich says she's still hopeful we'll get to opening statements today following the 3:30 p.m. break.

DOJ says they want Guy Reffitt's son referred to as "Jackson," rather than "Jackson Reffitt." No objection from Welch or the judge.

Judge Friedrich says she does NOT expect us to hear from the first witness tonight. It's going to be one of the three USCP officers who repelled Reffitt from the Capitol.

Ok, second round of individual questioning begins. First juror up says he's pretty well informed about the Capitol riot. Watched the HBO documentary about it. Isn't familiar with Reffitt's case.

Juror says he can't remember specific people from the HBO documentary except for the "QAnon Shaman." I think we're all learning a lot about how readers/viewers retain info from our reporting during this.

Juror says he believes January 6 was a bad thing, but he understands the role of a juror and believes he could put his biases aside and listen to the evidence fairly.

This juror has been talking... a lot. Just a lot. Wants judge to understand he understands the responsibility of a juror. He says he was in mock trial in high school. A good laugh in the media room.

He was excused without any motion to strike.

Next juror up was out of the country on Jan. 6. Can only recall "the man with the horns" from media coverage.

After 40+ jurors, we just had the first one struck after speaking to the judge and lawyers through the husher phone (which we can't hear in the media room). Struck by mutual agreement.

Next juror up says the assault on the Capitol was the "largest affront to our democracy we've seen in our current era," but says he separates the attack from the political rallies that preceded it.

Juror says his father was a public defender who mostly represented juvenile defendants. He's not a lawyer though. He works as an Arabic linguist for the DoD.

Juror says he thinks Trump and Giuliani's actions were "quite clear at the time what their intentions were." But says it's harder to judge the intentions of a group of thousands of people. Basically, he separates Trump/Giuliani and others on stage from the rioters.

No questions from Welch and no motion to strike either. We're now 3-4 qualified jurors away from moving on to peremptory challenges.

Next juror is at least the second employee of the Architect of the Capitol. Says he wasn't working on Jan. 6, but was on site not long afterward.

Juror says he works closely with Capitol Police and knows an officer who was assaulted on January 6.

"My job is to maintain those buildings, and to see them damaged that way was pretty hard," he says.

Juror says he hasn't been at the Capitol since Jan. 6, 2021. He works at the Library of Congress. But he knows officers who were there.

Juror says he hasn't worked on a project in the Capitol itself for 4-5 years. Usually works either in the Library of Congress or the Cannon building.

Welch really hasn't questioned a lot of jurors, but unsurprisingly asking now about the injuries to the juror's USCP officer friend. Asks if listening to testimony from other officers who say they were attacked would remind him of his friend. He acknowledges it would.

Welch discussing something with Reffitt now. Judge Friedrich asks if he's going to move to strike, but he says no. He could always file a peremptory challenge later.

Next juror up says he has aging parents in Colorado who he regularly goes to visit. He has a trip planned for next week for his mother's 89th birthday. Says he's gone to visit her for her birthday every year for 30 years.

Juror says he read or heard something about Guy Reffitt earlier this week. Heard he had a firearm, is from Texas and threatened family members if they turned him in. Also saw pictures of him on TV.

Unsurprisingly, Welch moves to strike this juror for cause.

Welch says this juror has provided the most specific information about the case of any juror we've heard so far. Reason to believe he's already formed an opinion about the case. Also his mind may wander elsewhere due to his pending trip.

DOJ opposes striking juror. Says they expect evidence to wrap by Friday or early Monday morning. Also says juror only spoke of facts the court itself gave him this morning when Judge Friedrich introduced the basics of the case.

Berkower describes him as very thoughtful and having a careful demeanor, says DOJ believes he could put any preconceived notions aside and judge the case fairly.

Judge Friedrich strikes him for cause.

After a long discussion with the attorneys on the husher phones, Friedrich says she's going to strike the juror who said he worked for the Architect of the Capitol and knew a USCP officer who was injured. Unclear why the strike came now, since Welch did not move for it initially.