Now its made even more history: Someone found to have engaged in insurrection that day has been disqualified from office, for what appears to be the first time in 150 years. We have not had to escalate the process for any other political committee, Vigil said. Whether this will ultimately stand up if appealed remains a major question and one that could have far-ranging implications. Its about protecting donors.. Griffin is pictured riding a horse on Sixth Avenue in New York City on May 1, 2020. Griffin already served 20 days in jail upon his arrest last year, so he was released Friday. Earlier this month, a jury convicted a Texas man, Guy Wesley Reffitt, of storming the Capitol with a holstered handgun inthe first trial for a Capitol riot defendant. Its the first time a U.S. president has sought to interrupt the peaceful transfer of power. . By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider Terms of Use / Privacy Policy / Manage Newsletters, Trump cowboy found not guilty of campaign finance charge, New Mexico bars commissioner from office for insurrection, Official guilty of illegally entering Capitol grounds Jan. 6, Secret Service says Pence taken to underground loading dock during U.S. Capitol riot, Cowboys for Trump founder appeals recall bid to high court, Effort advances to recall Cowboys for Trump founder, Cowboys for Trump leader wont resign his Otero County post, Cowboys for Trump leader released from jail pending trial, Cowboys for Trump leader appeals for pre-trial release, Judge denies release of jailed Cowboys for Trump leader, Cowboys for Trump leader refuses virus test in jail, Cowboys for Trump leader seeks release from Washington jail, Cowboys for Trump leaders seeks cover for financial backers, Jailed Cowboys for Trump leader urged to quit county office, Cowboys for Trump leader arrested over US Capitol riot, Trump accuses overly political National Archives of letting him leave W.H. The strikes left 34 people injured, including three children, and caused widespread damage. Griffin, an ardent conspiracy theorist who refused to certify the state's primary election results this summer in Otero County, told CNN he has been ordered to clean out his office and attacked. Speaking to another crowd, he called on men from across our nation to come to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, because it might be a battle..
Griffin banned from holding office, 9/11 heroes remembered and more - Yahoo I lived a life devoted to the Lord, Griffin said. Jurors also convicted him of obstructing Congress from certifying the Electoral College vote on Jan. 6, of interfering with police officers who were guarding the Capitol and of threatening his two teenage children if they reported him to law enforcement. The strikes left 34 people injured, including three children, and caused widespread damage. The dismissed charge against Griffin carried a potential punishment of up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine.
'Cowboys for Trump' Founder to Stand Trial in Capitol Riot Case agent who had instigated the mob that day. Two days later, in Bowling Green, Ky., Mr. Griffin told a crowd that a war was underway with the elitist, gross, wicked, vile people, adding, We got to get our country back., In Atlanta, on Jan. 4, the ruling said, Mr. Griffin anticipated that there could be violence when crowds of people descended on Washington for Mr. Trumps speech. He denies that he did anything that was illegal. The 1 I lost I will appeal. Griffin elected to have a bench trial, meaning a Trump-appointed judge rather than a jury of 12 will review the evidence and decide his fate. Mazza is the second person to be convicted of carrying a handgun in the Capitol riot, with charges pending against a third. Judge Trevor McFadden served as a top Justice Department official in the Trump administration before the Senate confirmed him in 2017 to the federal trial court in Washington, DC. Newsweek has contacted Cuoy Griffin's county commission office for comment. If this ruling stands up on appeal, it sets a significant precedent for the next election cycle, said Gerard Magliocca, a constitutional scholar at Indiana University who has studied Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
This story has been shared 264,224 times. A Senate Judiciary Committee report stated that Mastriano and his wife took part in the January 6 insurrection, with video footage confirming that they passed through breached barricades and police lines at the U.S. Capitol. (Mastriano has said he never entered the Capitol itself, and he has been charged with no crimes.). A Trump appointee, McFadden handed down the verdict because Griffin elected for a so-called bench trial, in which a judge rather than a jury reviews evidence and determines guilt or innocence.
Evidence at his trial showed that Griffin and his videographer climbed over various barricades and barriers, then clambered onto the inauguration stage in front of the Capitol and spent over an hour speaking through a bullhorn to the surging mob.
Judge calls Jan. 6 an 'insurrection,' bars 'Cowboys for Trump - CNBC Couy Griffin serves as District 2 Otero County Commissioner and Otero County Commission Vice Chairman in New Mexico, according to the Alamogordo Daily News. The judge said Griffins many defenses were not credible, and nor was his summary of his role on Jan.
Jury weighs whether Cowboys for Trump flouted campaign law But the judge said very few people who didnt enter the Capitol on Jan. 6 were charged, and sentenced Griffin to 14 days in jail and a $3,000 fine. In court papers, federal prosecutors said Griffin bragged about his involvement in the Capitol attack at a county commission meeting. The judge in the case, District Judge Francis J. Mathew, was unsparing in ruling that Griffin is disqualified from office. They said Griffin was a politician in his own right who clearly advocated for Trump while the president was a candidate for reelection, and that Griffin also promoted political positions on border enforcement, gun rights, abortion and more. A judge said Couy Griffin's stated remorse for January 6 conflicted with incendiary public comments. COVID report finds suicide calls, overdose deaths and mental illness soared in D.C. But legal experts say the ruling in New Mexico is significant nonetheless especially if it holds up. McFadden dismissed that claim as "preposterous.". Hes going to run, and weve got to know whether hes allowed to run or not, Magliocca said.
Cowboys For Trump leader guilty on one count in Jan. 6 Capitol riot People try to storm the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. Cuoy Griffin, a 1/6 suspect, says he doubts two of the fatalities caused by the insurrection. He is out there, he still believes this stuff. The judge heard testimony Monday from three government witnesses. Some have sought to wield that seldom-invoked provision against members of Congress, without success, and even floated using it against Trump. The dismissed charge against Griffin carried a potential punishment of up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine. and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.). Griffin was previously convicted in federal court of a misdemeanor for entering restricted U.S. Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, without going inside the building. Griffin's attorney also accused state campaign finance regulators of bias and singling out Cowboys for Trump for enforcement. Trump's latest attack addresses DeSantis' overseas trips to the U.K., Israel, Florida's Covid-19 record, and polling support for the 2024 Presidential race. What now? In an hourlong hearing, McFadden sentenced Griffin to 14 days in prison but credited him for 20 days the Cowboys for Trump founder had served while awaiting trial. In a written closing statement in court, he had argued that he had been at the Capitol to lobby vice president Mike Pence to not certify the election results, and that, In no way does that pertain to nor support insurrection/rebellion, reported the Albuquerque Journal. Griffin's defense lawyers plan to argue that, because Pence was rushed away amid the mayhem of January 6, the Capitol grounds were no longer a restricted, Secret Service-protected area by the time he was there. By Aila Slisco On 8/9/21 at 9:46 PM EDT. But Griffin has resisted pressure to register the group as a political committee, including filing an unsuccessful petition to the 10th District Court of Appeals. Griffin invoked free speech protections in declining to register and disclose donors to Cowboys for Trump, while expressing concern that financial contributors might be harassed. And he said there was "grave tension" between Griffin's conduct on January 6 and his oath as a county commissioner in New Mexico to protect and defend the Constitution. "To mount a meaningful defense Griffin must be allowed to test the veracity of the Government's contention that Vice President Pence was on the Capitol grounds during the relevant period," McFadden ruled. Sicknick died the day after the riots from a stroke. Feb 24 Who is the guy in the blue jacket? Cowboys for Trump, which Griffin founded in 2019, is also under fire. But he found that Griffins actions met the standard set forth by the 14th Amendment, citing Griffins violent rhetoric and evidence of his actions at the Capitol. They are as mistaken as you are, McFadden said. Griffin said he and fellow commissioners don't see the process as trustworthy.
Couy Griffin trial for trespassing on the U.S. Capitol grounds begins as conspiracy theories continue to swirl about the events of January 6, SCOTUS Now Just Another Congressional Committee, Trump Ramps up Attacks on DeSantis: 'Dropping Like a Rock', Russian Strikes on Pavlohrad Aim to Hamper Ukraine's Counteroffensive, Greg Abbott Criticized for Response to Texas Shooting: 'A New Low', Democrat Sold First Republic Stock, Bought JP Morgan Before Collapse, Conservative Influencers Struggle With Countering Biden's Messaging.
Cowboys for Trump founder returns to Otero County Commission Cowboys for Trump cofounder Couy Griffin is confronting a trial by jury on charges that he failed to register a political organization without filing related public financial disclosures. Griffin was sentenced to 14 days in prison but credited for the 20 days he served ahead of trial. The ruling declared the Jan. 6 assault an insurrection and ordered Mr. Griffin removed from office. Griffin, one of three members of the Otero County Commission in southern New Mexico, is among a handful of riot defendants who either held public office or ran for a government leadership post in the 2 1/2 years before the attack. Truth is I was 1 for 1 with the US Government. The report: The Jan. 6 committee released its final report, marking the culmination of an 18-month investigation into the violent insurrection. A Trump-appointed judge disagreed with Griffin's explanation while rejecting a legal argument that he was being "selectively charged" for his political beliefs in July. Thanks for contacting us. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Magliocca said the issue could arise in a number of ways moving forward and is ripe for the Supreme Court to litigate before Trump might run for and potentially win the presidency in 2024.
Capitol riot trial opens for Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin Indeed, in allowing Greene to remain in office, a judge had emphasized there was no evidence to show that Rep. Greene participated in the Invasion itself or communicated with or issued directives to persons who engaged in the Invasion. Griffin was much easier to tie directly to the insurrection, and he has now been found to have directly engaged in it. according to the Congressional Research Service, challenge to the candidacy of Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, an Arizona man who was falsely pegged as an undercover F.B.I. In court testimony, State Elections Director Mandy Vigil said that state regulators typically negotiate with political groups to encourage registration without seeking sanctions. (Griffin is the founder of a group called Cowboys for Trump, which has been promoted by the former president. After his sentencing, Griffin implored reporters to follow up on discredited conspiracy theories about the Capitol doors mysteriously opening on Jan. 6, an Arizona man falsely accused of being an FBI agitator in the crowd, and the possibility that voting machines in New Mexico might be electronically hacked.
Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin sentenced for trespassing At the same time, Griffins conviction was for misdemeanor trespassing, for which he was sentenced to 14 days and a $3,000 fine. Prosecutors didnt give any opening statements. I wonder who wrote it?. Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin arrives at the Federal Court House in Washington, Monday, March 21, 2022. He also took part in a multicity bus tour arranged by the pro-Trump group Women for America First designed to recruit protesters to go to Washington for Mr. Trumps speech on Jan. 6, in which the president called on his supporters to fight like hell against his election loss and urged them to march to the Capitol while Congress was meeting to confirm it. A federal judge found Couy Griffin, a county commissioner from New Mexico and founder of the group "Cowboys For Trump," guilty on one of two counts stemming from the Capitol riot. The confidential agreement was offered to Griffin during discussions at a Monday court hearing in Washington, D.C., according to the Associated Press. Griffin arrived in a cowboy hat, and the trial featured video footage of him on the Capitol grounds. After all, if Couy Griffin is disqualified from holding office for his role in Jan. 6, then shouldnt Donald Trump be disqualified for his even greater role in Jan. 6th?. Miller, a public defender, said Griffin's intention was to speak boldly and openly about common sense convictions and national pride without yielding to government control through the regulation of nonprofit groups. He is among only three riot defendants who have asked for a bench trial, which means a judge will decide his case without a jury. Until Tuesday, none had succeeded. The answer to that was yes, as the clip then segued into an interview with Babbitt's brother, Roger Witthoeft who described how close the siblings had been and how he was dealing with her loss. According to a court document, he wrote on Twitter that District Judge Trevor McFaddens PRE written response announcing the verdict was pathetic! In March, Judge Trevor N. McFadden, presiding at a bench trial in Federal District Court in Washington, found Mr. Griffin guilty of one misdemeanor count of illegally entering a restricted area at the Capitol and acquitted him of another that accused him of disorderly conduct. Why Gov. Newsweek reached out to Griffin for comment. I love the smell of napalm in the air, Griffin said in an apparent reference to a line by Robert Duvalls character in the war movie Apocalypse Now.. SCOTUS Now Just Another Congressional Committee, Trump Ramps up Attacks on DeSantis: 'Dropping Like a Rock', Russian Strikes on Pavlohrad Aim to Hamper Ukraine's Counteroffensive, Greg Abbott Criticized for Response to Texas Shooting: 'A New Low', Democrat Sold First Republic Stock, Bought JP Morgan Before Collapse, Conservative Influencers Struggle With Countering Biden's Messaging. Military Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin sentenced for trespassing The New Mexico county commissioner said he merely went to the Capitol to pray with protesters By Tom Jackman and.
Couy Griffin on Trial: A Tale of Two Realities Griffin is charged with illegally entering Capitol grounds the day a pro-Trump mob disrupted certification of Joe Biden's presidential election victory on Jan. 6, 2021. It would be helpful if they would take this opportunity to rule really for the first time what Section 3 means.. As a strategic matter, Im skeptical that disqualification under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is the best way or even a productive way to fight back against anti-democratic forces across the country, Hemel said. Prosecutors played video clips that showed Griffin moving through the mob that formed outside the Capitol, where police used pepper spray to quell rioters. 6.). "I'm not convinced even a little bit," the judge said. Unlike that trial, which featured felony charges, Griffin was accused only of misdemeanor offenses. More: Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin questions Capitol . McFadden told Griffin that as an elected state official, he had taken an oath to uphold the Constitution. Couy Griffin, a 48-year-old Republican elected official from Alamogordo, N.M., and founder of a pro-Donald Trump grass-roots group, had challenged U.S. prosecutors to prove Pence's whereabouts. "You're probably your own worst enemy here," McFadden said. Five people died on that day or in the immediate aftermath, and 140 police officers were assaulted. "Several of the defendant's statements in the recording of the meeting constitute either direct admissions that he was illegally present in a restricted area or evidence of the defendant's state of mind during and after January 6, 2021," prosecutors said. The difference is they didnt then decide to storm the Capitol building.. This just went from being theoretical to being something that is legally recognized and legally possible, said Noah Bookbinder, director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a nonpartisan watchdog organization that filed suit against Mr. Griffin on behalf of a group of New Mexico residents. Updated: 6:15 PM EDT June 17, 2022. Griffins attorneys said in a court filing that Pence had already departed the restricted area before the earliest that Griffin could have entered it, but Secret Service inspector Lanelle Hawa testified that Pence never left the restricted area during the riot. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest?
Couy Griffin guilty of misdemeanor trespassing on restricted Capitol More than 230 riot defendants have pleaded guilty, mostly to misdemeanors, and at least 127 of them have been sentenced.
State prosecutors accuse Griffin of a misdemeanor violation of failing to register as a political group, which is punishable by up to a year in prison and an additional $1,000 fine. The case against Griffin is unlike most of the Capitol riot prosecutions. U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden is scheduled to hear attorneys closing arguments Tuesday for the case against Otero County CommissionerCouy Griffin, whose trial in Washington, D.C., is the second among the hundreds of people charged with federal crimes related tothe Jan. 6, 2021, siege. Trumps attack on democracy after the November 2020 election started out as an attempt to use the judicial process to deprive voters of their choice of leader. The 2024 presidential race begins: Will it be a repeat of 2020? Regardless, they said the law only requires that Pence was at the complex or "would be" returning to prove that Griffin unlawfully entered a Secret Service-protected area. I went with the heart to pray with people, and that's what I did.". Addressing McFadden on Friday, Griffin said he was "very sorry" for the violence of January 6 and described as "disgraceful" the many assaults on police who were protecting the Capitol. The Court concludes that Mr. Griffins crossing of barricades to approach the Capitol were overt acts in support of the insurrection, as Griffins presence closer to the Capitol building increased the insurrectionists intimidation by numbers, wrote Mathew, who was appointed to the bench by former Republican Gov. as well as other partner offers and accept our. Griffins attorneys say hundreds if not thousands of other people did exactly what Griffin did on Jan. 6 and havent been charged with any crimes. Griffin is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17. Prosecutors have said that Pence remained at the Capitol complex during the relevant period. Babbitt was shot and killed by police as she tried to force her way past a barricaded doorway. Sign up for notifications from Insider! The secretary of states office prevailed in a June 2020 arbitration decision that ordered Cowboys for Trump to register as a political committee, file expenditure and contribution reports and pay a fine of $7,800.
Judge removes Otero County's Couy Griffin for Jan. 6 role : NPR Cowboys for Trump cofounder Couy Griffin has been found not guilty of a misdemeanor charge of failing to register a political group and provide financial disclosures at a trial in southern New Mexico. Struck responded "no" as the lawyer asked whether Griffin had destroyed anything, confronted law enforcement, or taken any action that would put someone in fear. He told Griffin, Youre not being sentenced for your beliefs about voting fraud and took aim at those advancing similar claims about fraud nationally.
Official Couy Griffin found guilty of illegally entering Capitol 'Cowboys for Trump' founder Couy Griffin sentenced in Jan. 6 case Smith said prosecutors apparently believe Griffin engaged in disorderly conduct by peacefully leading a prayer on the Capitol steps. I dont think justice was served, Griffin said of his case in a radio interview earlier this month. He called it a great day for America and added, The people are showing that they have had enough, prosecutors said. He said he was leading the group in prayer. That is offensive and wrong, Smith told the judge during his brief opening statements.
Couy Griffin - Wikipedia Smith asked Struck if anybody appeared to be riled up by the prayer that Griffin led. Pence remained in the loading dock location for four to five hours and never left the security perimeter before the joint session of Congress resumed on the night of Jan. 6, Hawa testified.
Griffin could face up to a year in prison is he is convicted. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. After being convicted at trial, many defendants wait quietly for their sentencing. Plenty of history very bad history was made on Jan. 6, 2021. as well as other partner offers and accept our. A judge in New Mexico declared Tuesday that the Jan. 6 Capitol riot was an "insurrection" as he ruled that Otero County Commissioner and "Cowboys for Trump" founder Couy Griffin must be . A judge said Couy Griffin's stated remorse for January 6 conflicted with incendiary public comments. Griffin was present at the Capitol during the riot but did not enter the building itself. Since Jan. 6, activists have sought to disqualify several members of Congress who supported questioning or overturning the 2020 election results, including Reps. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.) In addition to those legal arguments, the Justice Department asserted that pinpointing Pence's precise location on January 6 would jeopardize the continuing security of future vice presidents, including Vice President Kamala Harris. Reffitt's trial presented a test for the Justice Department as it undertakes an investigation it has called "unprecedented," and the conviction marked a significant victory in the nearly 800 prosecutions related to the January 6 attack.
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