During the insurrection of January 6, Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was one of the targets by the rioters looking to derail Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s election victory. A judge recently denied the request of the rioter infamous for putting his feet up on Pelosi’s desk to go to a car show.
Last week, a federal judge denied the request made by rioter Richard Barnett, who went viral for posting photos with his feet up on Pelosi’s desk during the insurrection, to go to a car show. Barnett is a self-proclaimed white nationalist and was among the hundreds of rioters that were arrested and charged by law enforcement following the riots. Barnett is also facing several charges, including a felony charge for bringing a weapon into a restricted building, as well as misdemeanor counts for violent entry and disorderly conduct among others.
Barnett was released from detention in April and is still awaiting trial as he is detained at home. However, he is allowed to travel up to 50 miles from his residence in Arkansas. A court filing Monday revealed the request by Barnett’s attorneys to relax the travel restrictions on him so he could attend a car show. They noted that Barnett lost his job after being detained for several months and thus needs to make money by traveling to car shows to buy and sell classic cars.
Federal prosecutors have denied the request, citing that Barnett remains a threat to the community. They also cited Barnett’s interview on Russian state television, where Barnett said he will continue to fight for his First Amendment rights. This was also denied by US District Judge Christopher R. Cooper.
Over the weekend, two of Pelosi’s staff members recalled the events of the insurrection in an interview with CNN Sunday. Alisa La and Kelsey Smith spoke about their experience during the riots and the aftermath. La and Smith recalled listening as the mob was looking for Pelosi in the Capitol.
“Just the way he was chanting her name. It haunts me,” shared Smith. “He was not going to be nice if he found her or someone associated with her.”
“It could have been multiple men that were doing that too,” said La. “I mean, we don’t know.”