A man from Ohio who is accused of entering the U.S. Capitol and stealing a coat rack from the Senate during the January 6 siege of...
A man from Ohio who is accused of entering the U.S. Capitol and stealing a coat rack from the Senate during the January 6 siege of the building, claims he was 'inspired to do so by former President Donald Trump's lies about election fraud.'
Dustin Byron Thompson, 36, from Columbus was accompanied by his layer Sam Shamansky on Monday morning at the U.S. District Courthouse in the Ohio state capital.
'How else do you explain otherwise rational, law-abiding citizens traveling to D.C. and doing what they did?' Shamansky asked as he made the point to a federal judge in the hearing which saw his client released on own recognizance.
In what could signal a defense strategy for many of the people ensnared after the Capitol riots, Thompson's attorney essentially is laying the blame at Trump's feet, saying his client was merely following the instructions of the former president.
As of Monday, at least 95 individuals have been charged in connection with the riot, according to DOJ records with at least five using a similar defense.
The words may end up being used against Trump in his Senate impeachment trial as he faces the charge of inciting a violent insurrection.
Dustin Byron Thompson, 36, is charged with stealing a coat rack during Capitol riots. He is pictured carrying the aforementioned coat rack
Thompson could be seen clearly on surveillance footage entering the Capitol building
Thompson is charged with federal misdemeanor counts of knowingly entering any restricted buildings or grounds and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. He is charged with theft of government property which carry potential prison terms of up to one year and fines up to $100,000.
Thanks to video evidence from the siege, there are 'very few factual disputes' regarding what Thompson did while storming the Capitol, after a Trump rally where he railed about the fact he believed the election had been stolen from him.
Thompson was pictured, circled, as he headed into an office which he went into for 4 minutes
Thompson is then pictured leaving the office, only this time holding the coat rack
Thompson was clearly identified from surveillance footage and social media pictures
Shamansky revealed to the Columbus Dispatch that his line of defense will be to outline how his client 'got brainwashed to the point they felt duty bound to follow the encouragement of their commander-in-chief during a highly charged political rally immediately preceding the invasion.'
Thompson is said to have 'believed the calculated, repetitive lies about how our democracy had been compromised and was being taken from them and they had to prevent that,' he said. 'It was nothing less than a call to arms from the highest level of government.'
On the day itself, the mob violently forced its way into the Capitol while the House and Senate were meeting to certify the vote count of the electoral college.
Dustin Thompson, left, of Columbus, who is accused of being part of the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, arrives with his lawyer, Sam Shamansky, to turn himself in
Dustin Byron Thompson, 36, from Columbus was accompanied by his layer Sam Shamansky on Monday morning at the U.S. District Courthouse in the Ohio state capital
The siege ended up disrupting the certifying of the election of President-elect Joe Biden.
Five people were killed including a Capitol Police Office.
A warrant was issued for Thompson's arrest on Friday after charges were filed against him.
Shamansky said he contacted the FBI over the weekend while making arrangements for Thompson to turn himself in.
About four hours after the riot, Thompson was spoken to by Capitol Police special agents while sitting on a sidewalk near the Capitol.
Thompson was charged with knowingly entering a restricted building without lawful authority and with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol Grounds. Pictured, A view of pro-Trump supporters storming the Capitol building January 6 above
Thompson made a run for it and dropped a wooden coat rack that is believed to have come from the Capitol
According to the the Capitol Police agent's affidavit, security footage shows Thompson entering the Capitol at 2:48pm before heading into an office.
He then leaves around four minutes later and is seen carrying a bottle of bourbon along with him before returning once again and later emerging with a coat rack.
Thompson was caught on surveillance video and the affidavit contains still photos from the footage with Thompson circled.
During his rally just prior to the riot, Trump had vowed to march on the Capitol with his supporters, but instead retreated to the White House to watch on TV
Thompson's justification for his action as being the president's own words brings to at least five the numbers of Trump supporters facing federal charges to have suggested they were taking orders from the then-president when they marched on Capitol Hill.
The words may end up being used against him in his Senate impeachment trial as he faces the charge of inciting a violent insurrection.
The comments, captured in interviews with reporters and federal agents, are likely to take center stage as Democrats lay out their case. It's the first time a former president will face such charges after leaving office.
'I feel like I was basically following my president. I was following what we were called to do. He asked us to fly there. He asked us to be there,' Jenna Ryan, a Texas real estate agent who posted a photo on Twitter of herself flashing a peace sign next to a broken Capitol window, told a Dallas-Fort Worth TV station.
Jacob Chansley, the Arizona man photographed on the dais in the Senate who was shirtless and wore face paint and a furry hat with horns, has similarly pointed a finger at Trump.
Chansley called the FBI the day after the insurrection and told agents he traveled 'at the request of the president that all 'patriots' come to D.C. on January 6, 2021,' authorities wrote in court papers.
Jacob Anthony Chansley, 33, has claimed through his attorney that he was 'duped' by Donald Trump into participating in the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol
Chanley's lawyer unsuccessfully lobbied for a pardon for his client before Trump's term ended, saying Chansley 'felt like he was answering the call of our president.'
Authorities say that while up on the dais in the Senate chamber, Chansley wrote a threatening note to then-Vice President Mike Pence that said: 'It's only a matter of time, justice is coming.'
Trump is the first president to be twice impeached and the first to face a trial after leaving office. The charge this time is 'inciting violence against the government of the United States.'
Opening arguments in the trial will begin the week of Feb. 8. House Democrats who voted to impeach Trump last week for inciting the storming of the Capitol say a full reckoning is necessary before the country - and the Congress - can move on.
Jacob Anthony Chansley is pictured as he occupied the Senate dais at the US Capitol