“Cowboys for Trump” co-founder Couy Griffin was found guilty Thursday of illegally entering restricted Capitol grounds, marking the second conviction in the Jan. 6 riot cases.
Griffin, 48, a New Mexico county commissioner and a rodeo rider, was convicted on one misdemeanor charge of entering and remaining in a restricted building and another count of disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, both of which carry a maximum sentence of one year in prison, per the Associated Press.
“He crossed over three different walls,” said U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, according to Politico. “All of this would suggest to a normal person that perhaps you should not be entering the area.”
McFadden, who was appointed to the court by the Trump administration, did not hand the Justice Department a total victory in the case. He ruled that Griffin was not guilty of the disorderly conduct charges prosecutors brought against him, arguing there was not enough evidence that Griffin intended to disrupt the 2020 election certification on the day of the Capitol riot. The ruling came in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia after a two-day bench trial. Griffin will be sentenced on June 17.
FIRST CONVICTED JAN. 6 RIOTER REQUESTS NEW TRIAL
At one point during the trial, Griffin’s lawyer expressed interest in then-Vice President Mike Pence’s precise location during the riots. The charges against Griffin hinged on the notion that he was on grounds that were restricted due to Secret Service presence. Prosecutors initially claimed then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was present at the Capitol, but that was later shown to be untrue.
Defense attorney Nick Smith pressed the prosecution about Pence’s location, arguing that Griffin entered the building after Pence was evacuated, according to Politico. Over the objections of the Justice Department, McFadden ordered the Secret Service to reveal Pence’s location. The agency then said Pence was taken to an underground loading dock.
Following his trial, Griffin told reporters he does not plan to resign from his post as Otero County commissioner and said, “I wear Jan. 6 as a badge of honor,” according to Politico reporter Kyle Cheney. Griffin also said he was unsure of whether he would appeal the conviction, noting he was “tired” of the legal wrangling.
Griffin was arrested on Jan. 17, 2021. Law enforcement received a tip that he attended the riot and combed through his social media profile. They found a video on his Facebook page that has since been removed in which he said he “climbed up on the top of the Capitol building and … had a first-row seat,” according to the Justice Department. Prosecutors also found videos on his Facebook page in which he mused about returning to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20, 2021, to “plant our flag” on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s desk.
Griffin is one of at least 10 people charged in connection with the Jan. 6 riot who either held an office or ran for office within 2 1/2 years of the attack, the Associated Press reported. More than 775 people from all 50 states have been charged with crimes related to the Jan. 6 riot, and nearly 230 of them have pleaded guilty, according to the Justice Department.
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Unlike the first Jan. 6 trial in which Guy Reffitt was convicted by a jury on several felony charges, Griffin opted for a bench trial in order to speed up the process. A bench trial is a proceeding without a jury. So far, he is one of three Jan. 6 defendants who requested a bench trial and does not regret waiving his right to a jury.
Reffitt was unanimously convicted earlier this month. On Tuesday, Reffitt’s lawyers filed a request for a new trial, expressing concerns that the government did not present enough evidence for his conviction.
