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Man photographed in Pelosi's office, W.Va. lawmaker among those charged over deadly riot

08 January 2021
Dan Ackermann

The man who was photographed sitting at a desk in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office during Wednesday's deadly siege has been arrested and charged with three felony counts, including theft of public property and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, officials said Friday.

The big picture: Richard Barnett of Arkansas is among several people facing federal charges over Wednesday's deadly riot at the Capitol. Authorities, who have asked for public assistance in identifying riot participants, are expected to continue to make arrests in the coming days.

  • Derrick Evans, a West Virginia state delegate who filmed himself storming the Capitol Wednesday, has been charged with entering a restricted area, per AP. Several state lawmakers have called for Evans to resign.
  • An Alabama man was also charged with possession of an unregistered firearm (destructive device) and carrying a pistol without a license. The Justice Department said it is alleged the man’s vehicle contained 11 explosive devices known as Molotov cocktails and firearms.
  • Additionally, approximately 40 individuals have been arrested and charged in DC Superior Court with offenses including unlawful entry, curfew violations, and firearms-related crimes.

What they're saying: “Just because you’ve left the DC region, you can still expect a knock on the door if we find out you were part of the criminal activity at the Capitol,” Steven D’Antuono, assistant director in Charge Washington field office, said in a press briefing Thursday, per Politico.

  • “We are sparing no expense or personnel or effort to root those perpetrators out and find them," he added.

D'Antuono also defended law enforcement's response, saying “there was no indication there was nothing other than First Amendment protected activity," according to Politico.

Between the lines: Several media outlets, including ProPublica, have reported that for weeks, far-right Trump supporters discussed the idea a violent protest on various social media and chat platforms.

Go deeper: The Capitol siege's QAnon roots

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.