WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Friday convicted five men on multiple felony counts each for helping cause the first breach of police barricades at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The five defendants – Ryan Samsel, James Grant, Paul Johnson, Stephen Randolph and Jason Blythe – went to trial before U.S. District Judge Jia M. Cobb late last year. On Friday, Cobb convicted each of them of felony counts of civil disorder and assaulting police with a dangerous weapon and Samsel, Grant and Johnson each of a felony count of obstruction of an official proceeding. Samsel individually was also convicted of additional felony counts of civil disorder and assaulting police. All five men were acquitted of felony counts for being in a restricted area with a dangerous weapon.
At trial, federal prosecutors argued the five men were among the first supporters of former President Donald Trump to take up positions on the west side of the Capitol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Foster said although their role in knocking down bike rack barricades was brief, it was a critical moment that helped kick off the larger riot.
“The breach happened over a very short period of time, but that does not diminish the seminal importance of this event,” Foster said, adding that the five men had “ignited a fire that burned for over four hours at the Capitol.”
Samsel, of Pennsylvania, is perhaps the best known of the defendants. He was convicted Friday on eight of the 12 counts he faced.
Samsel bragged to a friend that a photograph of him at the riot in his red “Trump” hat and t-shirt was used on the cover of TIME Magazine for being the first one over the fence. His role in the riot has also been the subject of conspiracy theories on the riot because he can be seen speaking to both Proud Boys organizer Joe Biggs and Ray Epps, a Marine Corps veteran and former Oath Keeper, before the breach. Biggs was convicted at trial of seditious conspiracy and sentenced in August to 17 years in prison. Epps pleaded guilty in September to disorderly conduct and was sentenced last month to a year of probation.
Samsel’s attorney, Stanley Woodward – who also represented Oath Keepers Florida state leader Kelly Meggs in the first Oath Keepers trial and is representing former President Donald Trump’s co-defendant Walt Nauta in the Mar-a-Lago documents case – argued the Justice Department was wrongfully trying to pin the entire riot on his client and his four co-defendants. During closing arguments last year, Woodward said the government’s case “sensationalizes and exaggerates the evidence.”
Cobb, who was nominated to the federal bench in 2021 by President Joe Biden, scheduled a sentencing hearing for all five men in June. Prosecutors asked her to order three of the defendants – Johnson, Randolph and Blythe – into custody following their convictions on crimes of violence, but Cobb declined to do so immediately. Instead, she requested briefing from all parties next week. Samsel has been held without bond since his arrest in early 2021. Grant’s pretrial release was revoked in January 2022 after he was arrested on suspicion of DWI. During his arrest, police reportedly found a rifle in his car.
All five men face potentially lengthy prison sentences in June. Other defendants convicted on similar charges have received sentences ranging from four years to more than a decade behind bars.