In what smacks of political messaging more than justice, a federal judge denied the release of the U.S. Capitol protester photographed with his foot on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s desk, describing his actions as “brazen, entitled, dangerous”.
And while Richard Barnett will remain behind bars, the revolving door in cities like Portland and Seattle stands out, where rioters and violent protesters are not only let out of jail without bail almost as soon as they are brought in, but a large number see their charges dismissed entirely. Repeatedly.
Barnett, 60, was arrested and charged with a felony charge of entering the Capitol with a dangerous weapon (stun gun) during the violent assault earlier this month, as well as misdemeanor charges of unlawful entry to a restricted building, disorderly conduct and theft — he took a piece of mail from Speaker Pelosi’s desk.
And while a federal magistrate in Arkansas ordered that Barnett be placed on home detention, Chief U.S. District Court Judge Beryl Howell blocked that order the same day, Politico reported.
An Obama appointee, Howell granted the government’s appeal to home detention at a hearing Thursday, meaning Barnett will stay in jail for months or longer, according to the online political news source.
“His entitled behavior that he exhibited in videos and photographs when inside the Capitol show a total disregard for the law, a total disregard for the U.S. Constitution,” Howell said. “This violence disrupted a constitutional function of Congress.”
The judge cited the “consequences” of the assault on those who live in D.C., to include herself.
“What happened on that day in the U.S. Capitol was criminal activity that is destined to go down in the history books of our country. … This was not a peaceful protest,” the judge said. “We’re still living here in Washington, D.C., with the consequences of the violence in which this defendant is accused to have participated.”
Barnett appeared brazen about his actions that day, telling a New York Times reporter: “I wrote her a nasty note, put my feet up on her desk and scratched my b*lls.”
Barnett, whose shirt was ripped opened and who kept shouting about being “maced,” was loudly entertaining fellow protesters with tales of his exploits.
After getting into Pelosi’s office, he said, “I wrote her a nasty note, put my feet up on her desk and scratched my balls.”
— Matthew Rosenberg (@AllMattNYT) January 6, 2021
Those actions being an apparent motivator for the judge to deny Barnett his freedom.
“He not only entered the Capitol without authorization, but he strutted into the office of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi,” Howell said. “He felt so entitled, he put his feet on the desk. He felt so entitled, he picked up her mail and walked off with a piece of mail.”
The irony here, of course, is that Pelosi and her $20,000-plus refrigeration system, may be the most entitled politician in the U.S.
The judge disapproved of a vulgar remark Barnett allegedly made about his actions and a sexist slur he directed at Pelosi, according to Politico, however, Barnett’s lawyer characterized his client’s actions as “political hostility to the speaker.”
As for perspective, the Antifa killer who executed a Trump supporter in a Portland street, Michael Reinoehl (who was later killed by police), had previously been cited for possession of a loaded gun in a public place, resisting arrest and interfering with police — only to see all the charges dismissed with a “no complaint,” according to court records.
And don’t forget the violent Minnesota rioters and the celeb-supported bail fund that got now-VP Kamala Harris’ stamp of approval.
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The longest-tenured writer at BizPac Review, Tom grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills.
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