Thread by @JordanOnRecord

One of these sites that aggregates stories off tweets took my tweets and said Guy Reffitt "glared" at witnesses. I never said that. Here, sketch artist Bill Hennessy Jr. captures what Reffitt has done when witnesses have ID'd him from the stand.

This image right here — captured by court sketch artist Bill Hennessy Jr. — is a big one for the jury to consider. In most footage, Guy Reffitt's big blue coat obscures his waist. But as he waved other rioters to press forward, prosecutors say, his .40-caliber S&W became visible.

Jurors return from lunch to hear the defense's case.

Bill Welch stands up.

"Your honor, the defense rests."

Onto jury instructions.

Judge Dabney Friedrich is now giving the jurors instructions. She's explaining the government's burden — beyond a reasonable doubt — and what that means. Tells them if prosecutors prove all required elements of a charge beyond a reasonable doubt, they have a duty to convict.

Part of the jury instructions covers Three Percenter Rocky Hardie's immunity agreement. He told jurors last week that he and Guy Reffitt drove more than 1,300 miles to D.C. because they wanted to have their guns and "battle rattle" with them. wusa9.com/article/news/n…

Judge Friedrich now going over the factors for each count. I covered them in my trial guide here: wusa9.com/article/news/n…

Judge Friedrich now on the final count, obstruction of justice. Jurors heard from Guy Reffitt's son Jackson about the threats against him and his sister Peyton for three hours last week. wusa9.com/article/news/n…

Jurors are taking a 10 minute break and then closing arguments will happen. DOJ is expected to take 45 minutes. Bill Welch said he only needs 15.

AUSA Risa Berkower is giving the government's closing argument.

"On January 6, 2021, Guy Reffitt lit the fire of the very first group of rioters that breached the Capitol building," she begins.

"Every mob needs leaders, and this defendant was a leader that day. He drove here with an AR-15 and a semi-automatic handgun for this very purpose," Berkower says.

A minute later: "He was wearing body armor that could stop bullets from a high-powered rifle. This was his plan."

Berkower says by watching Guy Reffitt confront officers — and only face less-than-lethal munitions in response — they learned how to overcome them. Began tearing apart the scaffolding and making shields.

Berkower: "He was ecstatic about what he did, about what the mob did. As you heard him say, he had a great day. When he got home, he bragged to his Three Percenter buddies that this was only the beginning. The preface. That is, until he realized he hadn't gotten away with it."

"In his opening, Mr. Welch told you this case was a rush to judgment, based on bragging and hype. You now know the evidence shows it was the exact opposite," Berkower says.

"Before the defendant got there, an angry crowd was growing, but no one had stepped up to the front," Berkower says. "That's what you saw in the videos from that day. You saw him lead the crowd."

"This defendant lit the fire in that mob, so that even after he was stopped they could continue their advance," Berkower says.

DOJ is now replaying the video of Guy Reffitt waving on the crowd in which his handgun is visible.

"This was not bragging. This was not hype. This was real. Officers like Shauni Kerkhoff, Adam DesCamp and Matthew Flood were fighting to defend the Capitol that day... and it was real for the defendant. He went there to overthrow Congress, and he was determined to achieve it."

"To his militia, he reported, 'We took the Capitol of the United State of America. What have you done today?'" Berkower says. "Was he bragging? Of course he was. But he was bragging about what he actually did that day."

Berkower, talking about the holster photo, says it's so clear FBI Special Agent Laird Hightower could immediately identify exactly what type it was.

Berkower: "He wore that large blue coat to cover it up, because he always planned to be armed at the Capitol."

Says Guy Reffitt knew it was illegal to have a gun in D.C., but didn't care.

"He was itching to be judged by you, a jury of 12. And now we're here."

DOJ playing the clip again of Guy Reffitt saying he "came in hot" and telling people if officers start shooting they'll face a "hell rain of fire."

"The defendant knew he was breaking the law by carrying a handgun in D.C.," Berkower says. "He just decided he was above the law."

"[Jackson Reffitt] told you he could tell his father wasn't just talking big... he had been saying things since August that were worrying him," Berkower says. "The messages his father sent on Christmas Eve scared him. He was getting really specific."

"We now know Jackson Reffitt was right. This wasn't bluster. This wasn't hype. Before he even left Texas, Guy Reffitt intended to overthrow Congress. The messages were the action plan, and the plan never waivered," Berkower says.

"[Guy Reffitt] told anyone within ear shot he planned to storm the Capitol that afternoon. He said it over and over again," Berkower says. DOJ then plays a montage of Reffitt saying just that.

"When people actually stopped to listen, he tried to recruit them to his cause," Berkower says. "And he made it clear that what he was recruiting them for was not peaceful protest, it was violent action."

"The defendant's intentions were clear before January 6, on January 6 and afterward. You know the 'why' to all of this. He went to overthrow Congress," Berkower says.

Berkower now going through the indictment count by count and factor by factor.

Berkower telling the jury count 2 -- the obstruction of an official proceeding charge -- is unique because the jury can find Guy Reffitt guilty if he aided and abetted others in doing it. She says he did that by "lighting the fire" of the mob.

"You know, from his statements and others, that he was 'packing heat' to help him overthrow Congress," Berkower says.

Berkower says Guy Reffitt "forced the Capitol Police into an impossible last stand... why the defendant occupied the officers, the crowd adapted and outflanked them."

Berkower says Jackson Reffitt didn't always take his father seriously, but things were different after January 6. That's why he believed the threat against him and his sister. That's why Agent Hightower thought Jackson seemed scared when they met.

Berkower says Guy Reffitt was committed to "vigilante justice."

"The election didn't yield the results he wanted, so the defendant took actions into his own hands. He chose to defy the law to get what he wanted: removing Congress."

"He wanted to take out Congress and an angry, energized mob gave him his best shot," Berkower says.

Berkower wraps. Bill Welch up now.

"Good afternoon. I would like to speak to you about why my client is guilty of Count 3(a), and not the others," Bill Welch says. "My client never put his hands on anyone else... Guy Reffitt never disarmed an officer, never tried to and did not help anyone else disarm an officer."

"He was not armed. He did not threaten harm. He was not aggressive," Welch says.

"Guy Reffitt exaggerates. A lot," he continues. "He was not going to say, 'I drove four days, drove a thousand miles, to be incapacitated in five minutes without doing anything.'"

"People say outrageous things," Welch says. "People have advocated fumigating the president out of the White House... the point is, they haven't been charge."

"As soon as [Guy Reffitt] was pepper sprayed, that was the end of it and he sat down on the banister railing," Welch says.

Welch says if there had been a gun, Capitol Police would have testified to that.

"You should find my client guilty of Count 3(a) because the evidence shows he remained in a restricted area. That is what beyond a reasonable doubt looks like. But the evidence ends there."

"The joint session adjourned approximately a half hour *before* my client's interaction with police," Welch says. Says Reffitt's interaction w/ police happened while VP Pence was still presiding over the Senate.

You should doubt Rocky Hardie, Welch says, because the DOJ gets to decide if he's been truthful or not.

You should also doubt Jackson's claims, he says. Jackson claims Peyton and her boyfriend were there, but they haven't told you that.

"Consider that Jackson Reffitt recorded five conversations, but he didn't record any threat," Welch says.

"Jackson has been hyping this on Good Morning America, on CNN and on his GoFundMe page, which has made him almost $150,000."

"You should have doubts about the missing holster," Welch says. "If they had found the holster at his house, they would have seized it, because they seized dozens of other items."

Welch is implying the government maliciously edited the video of Guy Reffitt at the riot where you can see the holster.

"We do not know how they were prepared, how they were enhanced, or when," Welch says.

"This case has been a rush to judgment, most of the case on bragging, a lot of hype," Welch says. "Be the grownups in the court. Separate the facts from the hype. Find Mr. Reffitt guilty of Count 3(a). Not the other charges. Thank you."

AUSA Jeffrey Nestler back up now.

"Yes, Guy Reffitt brags. But you know what he brags about? The truth."

"Mr. Welch keeps talking about fake videos," Nestler says. "I don't know what he's talking about. There's no fake videos. You can see for yourself."

Shows a side-by-side of Reffitt on the Zoom video w/ a pic of his living room showing the same artwork in the background.

Nestler is now going through the Zoom video where Guy Reffitt describes his actions statement by statement -- each followed by a video of Reffit at the Capitol doing that thing.

"The defendant was bragging because he was speaking the truth."

Now playing the video of Guy Reffitt saying he was telling the mob, "Go forward! Go forward!" and making the arm-waving motion. After that, the actual video from the riot, in which he can be seen making the exact same motion.

"Mr. Welch told you the defendant is guilty of Count 3(a). No. He's guilty of Count 3 and all the other counts. The defendant told you right here he had his '.40 on my side.' He was speaking the truth," Nestler says.

"Mr. Welch told you after he was incapacitated he sat on the railing and did nothing else. You know that's not true," Nestler says. "Here he is, with the mob, continuing up the stairs to the top."

"Mr. Welch told you the defendant never assaulted anyone. The government has not charged the defendant with assaulting anyone. Let that be clear," Nestler says.

Nestler says the zip-tie handcuffs Guy Reffitt brought with him show he was intending to drag lawmakers out of the Capitol.

"Ordinarily, it's impossible to know what someone is thinking. But in this case, the defendant has made it easy for you."

"He thinks he is above the law. He thinks what he did was justified. It is your job to tell him he was wrong," Nestler finishes.

And with that, the case is all but in the jury's hands. Tomorrow they'll be back in court for final instructions. Then they will deliberate until they have a unanimous vote on each of the five counts against Guy Reffitt.

MORE: Today, prosecutors said Guy Reffitt made it easy to know what he was thinking on January 6. He told everyone around him over and over. His attorney said he was just bragging to cover up how quickly he'd folded.

Tomorrow, a jury will decide. wusa9.com/article/news/n…