Eric Herr: Only those who were violent were prosecuted for Jan. 6 involvement

To The Daily Sun,

Bruce Jenket’s March 13 letter describing the treatment of Jan. 6 protestors as “political persecution” merits examination.

Crowds that day exceeded 75,000, 98% exercised their rights of assembly and free speech without political persecution or legal jeopardy. Only 1,000 were charged with crimes. According to the Department of Justice, most were charged with entering a restricted federal building or grounds, “approximately 326 have been charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers or employees, including 106 individuals … charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer.”  

Jenket focuses on four individuals to make his case. But David Judd was charged and found guilty of assaulting law enforcement officers and related charges. Julian Khater pleaded guilty to two counts of assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers with a dangerous weapon. George Tenney III pleaded guilty to civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding. And Howard Richardson pleaded guilty to attacking a police officer, not with a flag alone as Jenket suggests, but with a flag and metal flag pole so violently that the pole broke.  

Should the Jan. 6 actions of these four and those of others found guilty of criminal offenses be viewed no differently from the nonviolent actions of the other 74,000-plus protesters? Should their unlawful actions be excused, or should the rule of law apply?

Did such actions express loyalty to the rule of law? The Constitution? The will of the people? The truth? Or to one man and a myth, despite numerous election recounts and court cases that belied the myth, AG William Barr’s statement that Trump’s fraud claims were “detached from reality,” and even Fox News’ call on the Arizona race?

Eric Herr

Hill