Many participants in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots are being held in solitary confinement in Washington, D.C.’s city jail, a situation that’s drawing scrutiny from Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bob Casey and the American Civil Liberties Union.
The Department of Justice has charged 510 individuals in connection with the Jan. 6 breach, which began when supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol with the intent of trying to stop the certification of Electoral College votes for Joe Biden as president.
After Jan. 6, Washington, D.C., jail officials decided that all Capitol riot detainees be held in “restrictive housing” as a safety measure for the accused. However, the accused found themselves in solitary confinement 23 hours a day before their trials even started.
“I do not believe in solitary confinement for extended periods of time for anyone,” Warren, a Massachusetts senator and former Harvard Law School professor, said of the Jan. 6 rioters when asked by the Washington Examiner.
Casey, a Pennsylvania Democrat, who says he wants to look into the issue further said, “Obviously, in any instance, I think solitary confinement is concerning.” Republicans also objected to the treatment of the jailed Jan. 6 rioters.
The American Civil Liberties Union, which has recently drawn criticism for favoring liberal causes over its tradition of representing unsympathetic clients and causes, is also weighing in on the side of Trump protesters being held alone.
“Prolonged solitary confinement is torture and certainly should not be used as a punitive tool to intimidate or extract cooperation. We’re pleased to see that message is getting through to Senators,” Tammie Gregg, deputy director of the ACLU National Prison Project, told the Washington Examiner in a statement.
HOUSE VOTES TO CREATE JAN. 6 RIOT COMMISSION DESPITE TOP GOP OBJECTIONS
“Nobody should be detained indefinitely in America for domestic law purposes. So they deserve their day in court,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, told the Washington Examiner.
Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, agreed and referenced rioters in Minneapolis, Minnesota, after the death of George Floyd in police custody a little over a year ago.
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“I think the standard for justice should be the same for everyone. Whether you are trying to mob and attack people in D.C. or Minneapolis,” Paul told the Washington Examiner. “Whether you break the laws here, it seems like there’s more than one standard, but we should apply the same standard to everyone.”
A group of Republican senators sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland Tuesday decrying the “unequal justice” the Jan. 6 rioters may be receiving.
