Florida resident Michael Curzio, one of the many Trump supporters taken into federal custody following their participation in the violence at the Capitol in January, will continue to be held in jail ahead of his trial, according to an order handed down this week by federal Judge Carl Nichols. Although unlike other defendants who’ve been ordered to jail, Curzio is only facing misdemeanor charges, prosecutors pointed to the fact that Curzio had been released from jail in 2019 after an eight-year sentence over attempted murder to support their observation that he poses an ongoing threat to the public.
Judge Carl Nichols rules from the bench that Michael Curzio will remain in jail pending trial, finding that even taking into account the DC Circuit's new standards, the govt has met its burden of showing he poses an ongoing danger to the community if released
— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) April 21, 2021
Prosecutors also pointed to Curzio’s past connections to white supremacy in making their case for his continued detention. Among other ties, Curzio was a member of a violent white supremacist gang while behind bars, and he currently has tattoos of Nazi symbols. Although Curzio has disavowed his documented connections to white supremacy, the assistant U.S. Attorney handling Curzio’s case noted to Nichols during the proceedings that Curzio’s tattoos do “not indicate a passing or convenient membership,” and on a more general note, this same prosecutor also noted that — in theory — Curzio’s behavior has proven that he might be a participant in another incidence of violence on par with January 6 were it to unfold.
Curzio was originally charged with unlawful entry, disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on the Capitol grounds. Other defendants in Capitol riot cases have faced more serious charges, like conspiracy, which carry longer prison sentences if convicted. Recently, federal prosecutors presented evidence that another Florida resident involved in the rioting, Kenneth Harrelson, was part of an effort to stash weapons at a particular hotel in the vicinity of D.C. in connection to the Capitol violence. The idea was that these weapons could have been used by those on the ground in D.C. if requested, and Harrelson has been ordered to jail ahead of his trial.
Republicans like ex-President Donald Trump himself and Sen. Ron Johnson (Wisc.) have sought to revise the history of the Capitol violence. Johnson, for instance, has falsely claimed that there was no violence on the Senate side of the Capitol during the rioting, and during a Fox interview, Trump said the following:
‘Right from the start, it was zero threat. Look, they went in — they shouldn’t have done it — some of them went in, and they’re hugging and kissing the police and the guards, you know? They had great relationships. A lot of the people were waved in, and then they walked in, and they walked out.’
He is a liar. At least 140 officers on scene at the Capitol were injured after getting violently physically attacked by Trump’s maniacal supporters, and injuries included “cracked ribs,” “smashed spinal discs,” and a stab wound from a metal fence stake, according to Capitol Police officers’ union chair Gus Papathanasiou.
