Another individual has been arrested for attacking police officers during the storming of the Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump in January. Now, it’s 24-year-old Illinois resident James Robert Elliott — otherwise known as Jim Bob Elliott, according to the Justice Department — who has been arrested and charged with a slew of serious offenses, including assaulting police with a dangerous weapon and civil disorder. Overall, Elliott is facing six charges, including five felony offenses, and the allegation of assaulting police with a dangerous weapon alone comes with a sentence of up to 20 years, if convicted.
As we approach the one year anniversary of Donald Trump inciting an attempted coup on the American government, we can't get complacent—he is without question going to try it again
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) December 22, 2021
Just recently, Florida resident Robert Palmer was sentenced to over five years in prison after pleading guilty to assaulting police with a dangerous weapon during the Capitol riot; he’d used an empty fire extinguisher canister and a wooden plank. His sentence was the longest to be imposed in any Capitol-riot related case up to that point, so it’s clear that Elliott faces the possibility of steep consequences for his actions, even if he pleads guilty. Per a press release from the Justice Department, Elliott is alleged to have “used a flagpole to assault officers while illegally on the Capitol grounds.”
Biden 81,283,786
Trump 74,222,552— Cheri Jacobus (@CheriJacobus) December 22, 2021
Although it’s not the first occasion when such has been the case, it remains notable that the Justice Department shared in that press release that Elliott’s case “is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.” Among others, those are the people who the government has on the case: individuals in the counterterrorism division within the national security arm of the Justice Department. It appears clear that Justice Department officials are not taking individual criminal cases that are tied to the Capitol attack lightly. And yet, former President Trump continues to avidly defend what happened — he has insisted, for example, that the real “insurrection” happened on Election Day 2020, in reference to his false election fraud claims.
As the investigation into January 6th continues, the question is still whether the financiers, enablers and planners of the riot will face real consequences. And that includes Donald Trump.
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) December 21, 2021
The House committee investigating the Capitol riot is, meanwhile, continuing its work, and that work was recently reported to include an examination of whether they ought to refer Trump himself and/ or others to the Justice Department for prosecution. (Final decisions on whether to actually bring a prosecution after such a referral would rest with the Justice Department.) Possible offenses under investigation include obstruction of an official proceeding and wire fraud, the latter of which is connected to the substantial sums of money that Republicans, including Trump, raised from supporters under the false pretenses of lies about last year’s election.
348 days ago terrorists ransacked the US Capitol and *hours later* 138-of-202 (68%) House republicans voted to make trump a dictator. They tried to finish the rioters’ job and end democracy. Never forget it.
— Bill Pascrell, Jr. (@BillPascrell) December 22, 2021
Featured Image (edited): via Blink o’fanaye on Flickr and available under a Creative Commons License
