Tyler Earl Ethridge, a 33-year-old man from Colorado, has become one of the latest participants in last year’s Trump-incited attack on the Capitol to be arrested by federal authorities for their involvement.
Ethridge was apparently a pastor at the time of the assault on the Capitol. In one video he filmed from inside the Capitol and posted to social media, he said: “I’m probably going to lose my job as a pastor after this… I think we’re to a point where talk is cheap. If this makes me lose my, my reputation, I don’t care.” What about if it leaves you with a felony charge? Ethridge’s charges evidently include civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding, which are felonies, alongside a range of misdemeanor offenses. The alleged misdemeanors include entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.
Obstruction of an official proceeding is among the most serious criminal charges with which rioters have been hit. It comes with a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison if found guilty, although significantly shorter sentences are possible. At the Capitol, Ethridge helped lead a portion of the riot. Approaching the Capitol from the northwest, he helped remove fencing that sounds like it would have impeded the flow of rioters behind him, according to the Justice Department. Eventually, Ethridge arrived at the Capitol’s West Plaza. “As law enforcement officers attempted to clear the crowd, Ethridge climbed a media scaffolding and exhorted the crowd to keep fighting,” the Justice Department adds. In other words: both in terms of his apparent help with clearing the way for other riot participants and his loud messages of encouragement, Ethridge seems to be among the rioters who took on a sort of leadership role that day as the violence unfolded.
Ethridge remained defiant at a noticeably late point: September of last year. On social media, he actually addressed the possibility of facing criminal charges, remarking: “Don’t be afraid of what they sentence you with. I’m not. I’m ready for whatever I’ll be charged with. America is still primed and ready.” “Primed and ready” for what? Ethridge sounds like he’s prepared to participate in something like the Capitol riot again. It’ll be interesting to see if he takes a more conciliatory tone now that he’s charged.
In another one of Ethridge’s social media videos, he tied what he was doing to his faith, suggesting his presence at the Capitol connects to a sort of religious extremism. “Christians, we need to infiltrate every area of society like this,” Ethridge apparently said in one of the videos he filmed inside the Capitol. “Every area of society like this. Peacefully. But if it takes a little bit of aggression to barge through the walls that Satan separates us from the culture, it’s time for the body of Christ to infiltrate the culture.” Ethridge was permitted to remain out of custody as his case proceeds.
Featured Image (edited): via Blink o’fanaye on Flickr and available under a Creative Commons License
