April 28 2021 A U.S. federal judge ruled on April 27 that a protester involved in a congressional riot will be released pending a final trial outside prison. The man had invaded the office of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the day of the riots.
The man, named as Richard Barnett, was one of the most high-profile protesters in the U.S. Capitol riots, the Capitol Hill newspaper reported. He broke into Pelosi’s office during the riot to take a photo and left a threatening letter to Pelosi. In January, the court’s decision called for Barnett to be held in pretrial detention.
The April 27 ruling reportedly overturned the January decision. U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled that Barnett did not pose sufficient danger and that there was no reason to keep him in jail while awaiting trial. The decision found that the prosecutor had failed to provide sufficient evidence that Barnett would pose a danger outside prison prior to the trial.
Reported that the congress riots, only a few people considered to pose a great threat to the public to carry out pre-trial detention. Recently, U.S. federal prosecutors have stepped up their prosecution of participants in the congressional unrest.
