In a challenge from a criminally convicted member of the violent mob that stormed the Capitol in early 2021, a three-judge panel on a federal court of appeals has unanimously upheld the usage of a disorderly conduct charge against that defendant, no matter the arguably quieter — when considered in isolation — nature of the individual’s conduct.
The key factor, the judges said, was that the behavior broke with established order, even if the defendant himself wasn’t, say, screaming or breaking windows. The specific challenge was over the criminal allegations faced by Russell Alford, who was eventually sentenced by federal Judge Tanya Chutkan to a year in prison, which he also challenged — unsuccessfully — with these appeals court judges. While “determining whether an act is disorderly, the act cannot be divorced from the circumstances in which it takes place,” the judges said, as highlighted by POLITICO.
Though this specific dispute only covered the criminal allegations faced by Alford, the judges’ decision establishes a precedent within this particular judicial circuit, which is where criminal proceedings related to the Capitol riot have often taken place anyway. The ruling, as POLITICO also highlighted, said Alford “made a deliberate choice to join the crowd and enter the Capitol when he was plainly not permitted to do so.” Most of those who’ve been criminally charged in connection to the Capitol riot have been accused of some version of disorderly conduct.
Meanwhile, other news in criminal cases from the Capitol riot is the newly announced apprehension of three individuals charged in connection to the day who’d been evading authorities. One from the group, Jonathan Pollock, had evidently been on the lam since 2021, never even entering a formal plea after facing charges that year. His sister and an individual who reportedly has worked at a business belonging to the family were the others apprehended. The FBI didn’t explain how they found the three, simply saying they’d been taken into custody at a property in Groveland, Florida. The announcement came Saturday, the anniversary of the Capitol riot.
