Washington, D.C

Judges keeping Capitol riot trials in DC amid bias claims | WTOP News

Published

3 years ago

July 6, 2022

Judges keeping Capitol riot trials in DC amid bias claims | WTOP News

D.C. residents’ private connections to the riot spotlight the problem going through judges and attorneys in selecting neutral jurors in Washington to determine the a whole lot of prison instances stemming from the rebel — particularly as lawmakers maintain high-profile public hearings on the rebel lower than a mile from the courthouse.

WASHINGTON (AP) — For among the Washington, D.C., residents who reported for jury responsibility final month, a pro-Trump mob’s assault on the U.S. Capitol felt like a private assault.

Forward of a trial for a Michigan man charged within the riot, one potential juror stated a police officer injured throughout the melee is an in depth good friend. One other has associates who’re congressional staffers or journalists who labored on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. A girl whose boyfriend lived close to the Capitol recalled the fear she felt that day.

None of them served on the federal jury that swiftly convicted Anthony Robert Williams of storming the Capitol to impede Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential electoral victory.

However their private connections to the riot spotlight the problem going through judges and attorneys in selecting neutral jurors in Washington to determine the a whole lot of prison instances stemming from the rebel — particularly as lawmakers maintain high-profile public hearings on the rebel lower than a mile from the courthouse.

One of the vital severe instances introduced by the Justice Division within the Capitol assault has already been delayed after protection attorneys argued that their shoppers couldn’t get a good trial within the midst of televised hearings by the Home committee investigating the riot.

And a rising variety of defendants are pushing to have their trials moved out of Washington, saying the end result of the primary trials proves that the chances are unfairly stacked in opposition to Jan. 6 defendants within the nation’s capital.

“D.C. is a metropolis that, as an entire, feels that it has been the sufferer of a criminal offense,” attorneys in two instances in opposition to members and associates of the far-right Oath Keepers extremist group wrote in courtroom papers in search of to have their trials moved to Virginia.

Prosecutors and judges see no proof that Capitol rioters can’t get a good trial within the district and consider the method of hunting down biased jurors is working. Judges presiding over Jan. 6 instances have persistently rejected requests to maneuver trials, saying the capital has loads of residents who can function truthful jurors.

Prosecutors’ unblemished report to date in jury trials for Jan. 6 instances might communicate to the energy of the proof in opposition to the rioters, a lot of whom had been captured on digicam storming the Capitol and even bragged about their actions on social media.

It’s the newest in a string of long-shot authorized gambits from defendants charged with crimes starting from low-level misdemeanors to felony seditious conspiracy. Already greater than 300 folks throughout the U.S. have pleaded responsible to crimes stemming from the lethal riot. Collectively, 72 jurors have unanimously convicted six Jan. 6 defendants of all 35 counts of their indictments.

The federal courtroom in Washington — the place all of the Jan. 6 instances are being heard — has seen loads of politically charged trials, together with these for former Mayor Marion Barry, Iran-Contra determine Oliver North and ex-Trump adviser Roger Stone, prosecutors word.

It’s exceptionally uncommon for judges to agree to maneuver trials to a unique location, even in probably the most high-profile instances. Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, for instance, was tried in Boston over the objections of his attorneys though numerous folks within the metropolis had been impacted by the assault, which killed three folks and wounded greater than 260 others.

If Williams, the Jan. 6 defendant, had had his means, his trial would have been held in his native Michigan. His attorneys argued that inflammatory media protection of the Capitol assault tainted a jury pool that already was predisposed to view him as someone who victimized them.

Chief Decide Beryl Howell denied Williams’ request for a change of trial venue earlier than jury choice began on June 27. One after the other, the choose questioned 49 potential jurors earlier than seating 12 jurors and two alternates.

Howell disqualified a number of potential jurors after questioning them about their private connections or robust emotions concerning the occasions of Jan. 6. The choose requested a lady if her friendship with an officer whose ribs had been damaged throughout the riot would forestall her from being truthful and neutral.

“My Christianity says, ‘No,’ however my emotions say, ‘Sure,’” the girl replied.

A person married to a USA As we speak reporter stated Jan. 6 is a frequent subject of dialogue amongst their associates who work on the Capitol.

“It could be very tough to separate these,” he stated earlier than Howell excused him.

Howell additionally disqualified a lady who described herself as “very left biased” and a former New York Metropolis resident who stated his “deep-rooted” dislike for former President Donald Trump predates his White Home years.

The jurors picked for Williams’ trial included a NASA engineer, a shifting firm worker, a paralegal, a Wall Avenue regulator and a former State Division worker. None of them expressed any robust opinions about Jan. 6.

Greater than three dozen Capitol riot defendants have requested to have their trials moved out of Washington, together with at the very least 9 who filed their requests in June. None has succeeded to date.

In denying one such request, U.S. District Decide Tanya Chutkan stated she agreed with prosecutors that there isn’t any purpose to consider that Washington’s complete inhabitants was so affected by the occasions of Jan. 6 that it will probably’t seat an neutral panel.

“In any U.S. jurisdiction, most potential jurors can have heard concerning the occasions of January 6, and lots of can have varied disqualifying biases,” she wrote.

Earlier than a jury convicted retired New York Metropolis police officer Thomas Webster of assaulting a Capitol police officer throughout the riot, Webster’s lawyer stated a survey of Washington residents discovered that 84% consider Jan. 6 defendants had been making an attempt to overturn the 2020 election outcomes and hold Trump, a Republican, in energy. The protection lawyer, James Monroe, additionally famous that 92% of Washington residents voted for Biden, a Democrat.

“Given the lopsided political make-up of the District, it’s unimaginable to panel a jury that isn’t totally comprised of individuals preordained to seek out Webster — a presumed Trump supporter — responsible,” Monroe wrote.

U.S District Decide Amit Mehta rejected the movement, saying the survey exhibits that just about half of the Washington residents polled “would hold an open thoughts within the context of a particular case.”

Members of the Oath Keepers additionally failed to influence Mehta to maneuver their trial on seditious conspiracy prices from Washington to Alexandria, Virginia. Their attorneys famous that each Jan. 6 case tried earlier than a jury in Washington has resulted in a conviction.

“That’s true, however responsible verdicts are hardly uncommon in federal prison prosecutions,” Mehta wrote. “The mere existence of different responsible verdicts doesn’t imply that the jury pool is inherently tainted.”

Williams’ trial was the primary for a Jan. 6 case since a Home committee started holding hearings on the Capitol riot, which drew tens of millions of TV viewers.

Protection lawyer John Kiyonaga, who represents Capitol riot defendant Robert Morss, stated the Home committee hearings have “poisoned” the jury pool in Washington. Kiyonaga has requested for his consumer’s trial to be moved to a different district.

“The Committee has spoon fed to all the nation a exactly choreographed rendition of January sixth defendants as ‘insurrectionists’ and murderous orchestrators of an tried coup,” Kiyonaga wrote.

A trial was scheduled to start out in August for a number of members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group charged with seditious conspiracy and accused of plotting to forcibly oppose the lawful switch of presidential energy on Jan. 6.

However U.S. District Decide Timothy Kelly agreed to maneuver the trial to December after attorneys for some Proud Boys members argued they couldn’t choose an neutral jury within the midst of the Home committee hearings.

Protection lawyer Carmen Hernandez additionally cited “continuous prejudicial publicity” from the Home committee hearings as grounds for shifting the Proud Boys trial to a different district, however the choose hasn’t dominated on that but.

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Related Press author Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston contributed to this report.

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For full protection of the Jan. 6 hearings, go to https://www.apnews.com/capitol-siege.

Copyright
© 2022 The Related Press. All rights reserved. This materials might not be revealed, broadcast, written or redistributed.

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Washington, D.C

Report: The Trumps are in talks to buy back D.C. hotel lease

Published

9 hours ago

January 11, 2025

Press Room

Report: The Trumps are in talks to buy back D.C. hotel lease

The Trump Organization is engaged in preliminary discussions to reclaim the lease on its former hotel in Washington, D.C., reports the Wall Street Journal.

The hotel is currently operating as a Waldorf Astoria.

The Wall Street Journal said Trump Organization executive vice president Eric Trump met with an executive from BDT & MSD Partners at Mar-a-Lago earlier this week to discuss purchasing the lease rights to the former Trump International Hotel Washington D.C.

BDT & MSD Partners currently controls the property’s lease, following a 2023 default and subsequent foreclosure by previous leaseholder CGI Merchant Group. The Trump Organization sold the hotel’s lease to CGI in 2022, and the hotel was reflagged as a Waldorf Astoria.

The 263-room hotel, which occupies the Old Post Office building, opened as a Trump hotel in 2016.

During President Donald Trump’s first presidency, the hotel was a prominent gathering spot for Republican lawmakers, lobbyists and others with business involving the administration. The property came under intense scrutiny because of ethical and legal concerns.

The hotel has some of the largest guestrooms in the city. Top-tier accommodations include the 4,000-square-foot Presidential One Bedroom Suite and 6,300-square-foot Waldorf Townhouse Two Bedroom Bi-Level Suite.

The hotel is home to restaurants The Bazaar by Jose Andres and the Michelin-starred Sushi Nakazawa, plus 38,000 square feet of event space and a 10,000-square-foot Waldorf Astoria Spa.

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Washington, D.C

Man at the center of Washington DC ‘Pizzagate’ killed during North Carolina traffic stop

Published

20 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Man at the center of Washington DC ‘Pizzagate’ killed during North Carolina traffic stop

The man who stormed into a Washington D.C. restaurant with loaded weapons during an incident widely known as “Pizzagate” is now dead after North Carolina police shot him during a traffic stop.

Edgar Maddison Welch, 36, was shot just after 10 p.m. last Saturday, Kannapolis Fire and Police wrote in a news release this week.

Welch is the same Salisbury, North Carolina man who in December 2016, showed up to Comet Ping Pong, a pizzeria in Washington DC., with loaded weapons to investigate “unfounded rumors concerning a child sex-trafficking ring” that was allegedly operating out of the restaurant, federal prosecutors said.

He pleaded guilty in March 2017 to a federal charge of interstate transportation of a firearm and ammunition, as well as a District of Columbia charge of assault with a dangerous weapon.

Three months later, he was sentenced to four years in prison.

What is ‘Pizzagate’? What happened at Comet Ping Pong?

Welch’s initial reason for making headlines in 2016 stemmed from rumors of a child sex trafficking ring allegedly operating out of the pizza restaurant he stormed into, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia.

Rumors began circulating online that the restaurant was part of a trafficking ring operated by then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton – a fake news campaign targeting Clinton during the general election.

Welch allegedly tried to recruit people to participate in the storming of the restaurant leading up to Dec. 4. He’d texted someone saying he was “raiding a pedo ring” and sacrificing “the lives of a few for the lives of many.”

Prosecutors said Welch traveled from North Carolina to Washington D.C. with three loaded firearms, including a 9mm AR-15 assault rifle loaded with 29 rounds of ammunition, a fully-loaded, six-shot, .38-caliber revolver and a loaded shotgun with additional shotgun shells.

Welch parked his car and around 3 p.m., walked into the restaurant, where multiple employees and customers were present, including children, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia said in a news release.

“He was carrying the AR-15 openly, with one hand on the pistol grip, and the other hand on the hand guard around the barrel, such that anyone with an unobstructed view could see the gun,” the office wrote in the news release.

Once customers and employees saw Welch, they fled the building. Welch was also accused of trying to get into a locked room by forcing the door open, first with a butter knife and then shooting his assault rifle multiple times into the door.

Shortly after he walked into the restaurant, an employee who had no idea what was going on walked in carrying pizza dough, federal prosecutors said. When Welch saw the employee, he turned toward the worker with the assault rifle, which made the employee think he was going to shoot them. The employee then ran out, leaving Welch alone in the restaurant.

Welch spent more than 20 minutes inside the restaurant, then walked out, leaving his firearms inside. Officials then arrested him.

When Welch was sentenced to four years in prison, he was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release, during which he’d have to get a mental health assessment.

He was also ordered to stay away from the Comet Ping Pong restaurant while released and to pay $5,744 in restitution for property damage.

What happened leading up to the Welch’s death?

The deadly traffic stop happened the night of Jan. 4, said Kannapolis Chief of Police Terry L. Spry in a news release.

Around 10 p.m., a Kannapolis Police Officer patrolling North Cannon Boulevard spotted a gray 2001 GMC Yukon. The officer recognized the vehicle because he’d previously arrested someone who frequently drove the vehicle, Welch. He also knew Welch had an outstanding warrant for his arrest, police said.

The officer stopped the vehicle and recognized the front seat passenger as Welch, who had an outstanding arrest warrant for felony probation violation, police said. While the officer was speaking with Welch, two additional officers showed up to help.

As the officer who made the traffic stop approached the passenger side of the vehicle and opened the front passenger door to arrest the individual, the passenger pulled out a handgun and pointed it at the officer.

The initial officer and a second officer who was standing at the rear passenger side of the Yukon ordered the man to drop the gun. After the passenger failed to lower his gun, both officers fired at him, hitting him.

Officials called for medical assistance for Welch who was taken to a hospital for treatment. He was later taken to another hospital, where he died from his injuries two days after the shooting.

None of the officers at the traffic stop were hurt and neither were the driver and back seat passenger in the vehicle with Welch.

The officers involved who fired their weapons were Officer Brooks Jones and Officer Caleb Tate. The third officer at the scene did not fire his weapon, police said.

District Attorney will decide next steps in traffic stop shooting death

An outside law enforcement agency has been requested to investigate the shooting.

“This practice ensures there is no bias during the investigation and the findings of the investigation are presented to the District Attorney without any influence by a member of the department,” the police chief wrote in the news release.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is still investigating the shooting and the two officers who fired their weapons are on administrative leave, which the police said is standard protocol.

Cabarrus County District Attorney Ashlie Shanley will decide what the next steps are, police said.

Contributing: Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY

Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Follow her on Twitter at @SaleenMartin or email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.

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Washington, D.C

NBC Journalist Who Was Beloved in D.C. Dead At 62

Published

1 day ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

NBC Journalist Who Was Beloved in D.C. Dead At 62

Viewers and media industry professionals alike are sharing tributes to Derrick Ward, a longtime Washington, D.C., television journalist who died Tuesday at age 62.

Ward’s death followed complications from a recent cardiac arrest and was confirmed Wednesday by NBC 4 Washington (WRC-TV), where he’d been employed since 2006.

“Derrick has been an inspiration and cherished member of our family and his hometown community,” Ward’s family told the outlet in a statement that was shared during Wednesday’s broadcast. “As a distinguished journalist, Derrick’s storytelling, prolific writing, warmth and humor touched countless lives. Our children and our entire family will miss him dearly.”

As of Thursday afternoon, news of Ward’s passing had drawn an outpouring of condolences online.

“Stunned to hear of his passing. Watched that great man for over two decades tell some riveting stories all with class, respect, and precision,” podcaster Lee Sanders wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Well diverse and extremely talented man. Thoughts to his friends, family and colleagues. Not a good start to 2025.”

Watch an NBC 4 report on Derrick Ward’s death below.

Fox 5 DC journalist Tom Fitzgerald felt similarly, describing Ward as “one of the most pleasant people I’ve ever spent time with.”

“I’ll miss the graciousness, professionalism, kindness and glowing smile of this true gentleman,” he wrote on X. “Peace to his family, friends & NBC 4 colleagues.”

A Washington, D.C., native, Ward began his journalism career in radio, where he covered the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the D.C. sniper shootings of 2003, among other major stories. He then transitioned to television reporting when he landed a gig at WKBW-TV in Buffalo, New York.

Appearing on the “Architecture Is Political” podcast in 2020, Ward recalled how his love of storytelling inspired him to pursue a career in journalism.

“I want to tell the stories of this town that I grew up in,” he said. “I like doing things that can resonate with somebody ― if you can say something or write something somewhere and it just gets someone’s attention or whatever point you’re trying to make gets off and they can say, ‘Hmmm’ or ‘Uh huh.’ It’s the same reason that people do music and other things, I guess, is to look for that resonance.”

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In addition to his professional background, Ward was known as an avid golfer and guitar player. He is survived by his three children: Derrick Jr., Ian and Marisa.

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