Judge Acquits Jan. 6 Defendant

Saying there is no evidence he broke in, and that his statement that he walked through open doors past 'welcoming' Capitol police to get in, and committed no acts of violence and vandalism could not be refuted by the prosecution. The long, slow painful death of the insurrection narrative continues. The redoubtable Julie Kelly at Am Great, Judge Acquits J6 Protester in First Defeat for DOJ

D. C. District Court Judge Trevor McFadden today delivered a major blow to the Justice Department’s aggressive prosecution of January 6 protesters. Following a bench trial this week for Matthew Martin, a New Mexico man charged with the most common misdemeanors related to the Capitol protest, McFadden found Martin not guilty on all counts. It is the first acquittal in a January 6 case; nearly 800 Americans have been arrested and charged, mostly on petty offenses, for their involvement in the four-hour disturbance that day.

Martin was arrested a year ago on four counts: entering and remaining in a restricted building, disorderly conduct in a restricted building, violent entry, and parading in the Capitol building. Prosecutors confirmed he was in the building for roughly 10 minutes.

He pleaded not guilty and opted for a bench trial before McFadden, a Trump appointee. Taking the stand in his own defense, Martin said he was “waved” into the building by Capitol police. According to BuzzFeed’s Zoe Tillman, who is covering the in-person trials in Washington, an official for the U.S. Capitol Police testified that police “were so vastly outnumbered and couldn’t stop people [and] all they could do was observe [and] try to make sure no one got hurt.”

Calling Martin’s conduct “minimal and non-serious,” McFadden found it “plausible” that Martin was allowed into the building and did not realize the grounds were off-limits to the public.

Nick Arama at Red State,  New Verdict in Capitol Riot Case Throws a Wrench Into Political Narrative also noted Judge McFadden's apparent disapproval of the way J6 defendants have been treated vs prior Capitol protesters.

McFadden has pointed out disparities in the way Jan. 6 defendants have been treated in the past. He said that he thinks there is a difference in the way that the prosecutors are handling the Jan. 6 cases versus cases in the past (that may have involved leftist protesters).

At Da Wire, Judge Acquits January 6 Defendant: ‘Reasonably Believed’ Capitol Police Let Him In Building. Mary Chastain at LI, Former Federal Contractor Found Not Guilty of Charges Related to Jan. 6. At Twitchy, Judge apparently agreed with man facing Jan. 6 charges that Capitol Police let him in the building. Gabe Kaminsky at Da Wire notes how Dershowitz Says January 6 Acquittal ‘Enormously Important,’  ‘If That’s The Rule, We Will Win.’ Ace, YES: January 6 "Insurrectionist" Found Not Guilty When Judge Takes Notice of the Inescapable Fact That Capitol Hill Police Officers Let Him Into Congress "Better do a Wellness Check on AllahPundit and Pastor Blessing of Liberty and the rest of the French Davidians. I can't wait to hear how this judge must be one of those "populists" that threaten the very fabric of our nation" and The Federal Government Is the Insurrectionist. 

I guess my question is what happens when it turns out different judges are using different standards here, as will almost certainly be the case. Can someone convicted appeal on that basis?

Capt. Ed at Haut Hair, Trump to WaPo: I wish I'd marched with the crowd on January 6 "This raises one question above all others, which is … why did Donald Trump give an interview to the Washington Post? Note that he said he wished he had joined the march "to" the Capitol, not "into" the Capitol. Althouse takes a different angle in"I thought it was a shame, and I kept asking why isn’t she doing something about it? Why isn’t Nancy Pelosi doing something about it? And the mayor of D.C. also."

"The mayor of D.C. and Nancy Pelosi are in charge. I hated seeing it. I hated seeing it. And I said, ‘It’s got to be taken care of,’ and I assumed they were taking care of it."

Said Donald Trump, about the January 6th riot, quoted in "Trump deflects blame for Jan. 6 silence, says he wanted to march to Capitol/The former president struck a defiant posture and repeated false claims in an interview with The Washington Post"

At WaEx, Ex-Trump aides Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino held in contempt of Congress. Well, you should hold Congress in contempt. It's the least they deserve. CNN pleased January 6 committee obtains emails that former Trump attorney John Eastman sought to keep secret. I hope someone's paying attention so the next time Clinton.com claims attorney-client privilege, they get screwed too. 

KT at Haut Hair reports Pew Research Survey shows Biden is not America's most popular world leader. Ahh, too bad. 

Stephen Kruiser at PJ Media says Democrats All-in on Being the Pervert Option for November. I did say they'd probably double down. At Da Wire, Ohio Republicans Introduce Florida-Like Parental Rights Bill. From the MacIver Institute (I didn't know he had one) Wisconsin Parents Have Their Say, "Dan O’Donnell breaks down the Spring Election, a great one for conservative parents who wanted more control over their children’s education." Benjamin Yount at the Center Square, Conservative candidates win big in Wisconsin school board races. Spencer Brown, Republicans Wallop Democrats in Spending on Tuesday's Wisconsin School Board Races. Douglas Lukasik@DouglasLukasik "Tonight, Republicans collectively lead 64-36 with 74% of the vote in. There are 4 GOP candidates to 2 Dems (the runoff will be R/D with the R heavily favored), which might give a slight bump to Rs. This is a monster result for Rs. What I was hoping to see in a Latino ..."

Sarah Westwood at WaEx thinks Endangered House Democrats are failing to pinpoint voters' top concerns. NJ is Breaking down Democrats’ House-race strategy, "5. Democrats primarily are on defense..." From Fox, MSNBC analyst reveals 'dark' strategy to cut 'brutal' midterm losses: 'scare the crap out of' Democrats' base, Heilemann said the Democrats predict a 'brutal' picture ahead for the midterms." At the Georgia Star, a Poll: Herschel Walker Leads Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock in Potential U.S. Senate General Election Match-Up and on Da Hill, Herschel Walker leads Warnock in Georgia Senate race. At Fox, Kenosha County ravaged by BLM riots flips red after decades of Dem leadership, "The candidate campaigned on her 'eagle-eyed' approach to saving taxpayer money." Breitbart, Poll: JD Vance Gains in Ohio Senate Race, Tied with Gibbons and Mandel for Lead. Jazz Shaw at Haut Hair notes how one Ohio Republican announces retirement over redistricting, 

He was facing a primary challenge from a candidate who was endorsed by Donald Trump, but that doesn’t seem to be the real reason he’s leaving. He criticized the “redistricting circus” that’s been going on in Ohio, complaining that the courts were giving candidates barely a week to prepare for a race after learning the very differently drawn district where they would be running.

KT hears the House GOP ask Why is Title 42 ending when other COVID-19 mandates remain in place? Sister Toldja at Red State, Chip Roy Just Lights up Jerry Nadler in Heated Exchange About Title 42 and the Border Crisis. He managed to make Nadler look embarrassed. At PM, BREAKING: Texas to send illegal migrants to Washington, DC on charter buses, "Texas Governor Greg Abbott has announced the state will provide charter buses to send illegal immigrants to Washington, DC." and at NR, Governor Abbott Directs Texas to Send Illegal Migrants to D.C. on Charter Buses. Don't forget Delaware and a few other liberal hangouts. I'll bet it doesn't happen, but it should. 

Paul Bedard at WaEx, Arizona attorney general: Election fraud in Maricopa ‘raises questions’ about 2020. Just one of President*** Biden's numerous asterisks. 

“We have reached the conclusion that the 2020 election in Maricopa County revealed serious vulnerabilities that must be addressed and raises questions about the 2020 election in Arizona,” said an “interim report” issued today by Attorney General Mark Brnovich.

Also at WaEx, Georgia lawmakers pass bill giving GBI power to investigate voter fraud. Alex Parker at Red State on how Stacey Abrams Goes From Poor Politician to Multimillionaire by Losing an Election. Funny how that happens. Jazz Shaw, Democrats inadvertently show how voter fraud happens. "Allow me to remind you that this event took place five years ago and nobody discovered it until now. And nobody would likely have ever discovered it if someone hadn’t been poring over those voting records." Seek, and Yee shall find. Breitbart, Exclusive — Trump at ‘Rigged’ Premiere: ‘It Shouldn’t Be Allowed’ for Mark Zuckerberg to Privately Finance Election Operations. 

Ace, Tucker Carlson: "It's a Good Day in America," Now That Elon Musk Has Bought Almost 10% of Twitter, Brian Stelter: There Is a "Fear" About Elon Musk Buying Into Twitter. "Suddenly Stelter's worried about hyperoligarchs having power to decide what we can and cannot say. Stelter is worried about the first part of that -- he doesn't like the fact that Musk may expand the range of what we can say." At The Byte, There’s a Very Interesting Theory About Why Elon Musk Bought 9% of Twitter. To pwn a heckler? Nevertheless, Madeleine Hubbard at JTN reports Twitter rejects reinstating Trump, as ex-president’s social platform reports growth in engagement, "Truth Social will be home to “people who have been banned from Twitter for life,” CEO Devin Nunes says."

And for a light moment, at Da Blaze, 'Did you sh*t my pants?': Comedian has Megyn Kelly in stitches with HILARIOUS Biden impression.