Investigations into January 6 continue as 2024 elections approach

Phillip “Bunky” Crawford, 48, and Dominic Box, 34, are scheduled to stand separate trials in U.S. District Court in Washington on Monday on criminal charges related to their alleged involvement in the riots.

Crawford pleaded guilty last month to one count of aggravated public disorderly conduct, four counts of assaulting police officers and one count of violent and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, but decided to go to trial on the remaining five charges against him. Four of those remaining charges involve allegations that he used a dangerous or deadly weapon and could land him an even longer prison sentence.

Unlike many of his co-defendants, Crawford did not make a deal with federal prosecutors that could have avoided a trial. In a lengthy interview on May 31 on the streaming platform Rumble, Crawford described his decision as one of both principle and strategy.

“I pleaded guilty to six counts because I realized (prosecutors) don’t follow the Constitution and people don’t win. I look at the previous cases and it doesn’t look good,” he said. “I pleaded guilty to take responsibility for my actions because I touched police officers and they can hold me accountable for that. By the same token, (the officers) should be held accountable for their actions.”

Photo credit: US Department of Justice

Photo credit: US Department of Justice

Crawford was one of dozens of rioters who fought with police guarding a tunnel on the Capitol’s Lower West Terrace while members of Congress evacuated the building. The melee between rioters and police was one of the most violent moments of the day. Crawford defended his actions, saying he was trying to reach a woman at the front of the police line, who he said was being beaten by officers.

“I took action because I saw officers using excessive force. I will not back down from that,” he said. “When this is all over and my prison sentence is over, I can live with my head held high.”

In court documents, federal prosecutors have repeatedly told the court that Crawford shows no remorse and believes in the “legitimacy of his actions.” While Crawford portrays himself as a family man and patriot, prosecutors also pointed to his past arrest record, which included lying to police and violating probation, as evidence of his bad character.

In the other trial, scheduled for Monday, Box is charged with obstruction of an official proceeding and two counts of inciting a riot, all felonies. Before the 2020 election, Box was known in Savannah as a prominent member of a group that spread conspiracy theories related to the QAnon movement. On Jan. 6, Box livestreamed his march to the Capitol and portions of his time inside the building.

Box has a long history of drug and alcohol problems and was arrested in August in Jacksonville, Florida, on charges including drunken driving after police allegedly found him unconscious in the driver’s seat of his car in the parking lot of a Mexican restaurant. Since his arrest, he has been in jail in Jacksonville awaiting trial on those charges.

Photo credit: TNS

Photo credit: TNS

Since the riots, two dozen Georgia defendants have either agreed to plea deals or been found guilty at trial on the Jan. 6 charges. Their sentences ranged from probation to several years in prison. They join nearly 900 other defendants from across the country who have suffered the same fate.

“I think it’s safe to say that almost everyone who went to the Capitol that day knows someone who has been arrested or has had the FBI knock on their door,” said Jon Lewis, a research fellow in the extremism program at George Washington University.

At the same time, Lewis said it’s hard to say whether the investigations and prosecutions will help prevent further political violence in the coming election cycle. Lewis pointed to the recent example of convicted Jan. 6 rioter Brandon Fellows – who was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his role in the riot – who not only returned to the Capitol but also sat behind Dr. Anthony Fauci and made faces at the cameras during a congressional hearing this month.

“There are people who see these arrests and these charges as nothing more than politically motivated theater,” Lewis said. “And yet we’re still talking about the 1,400th minor defendant who is unlikely to go to prison and whose statute of limitations will expire if he is not pardoned by a new Trump administration.”

The fact that the rioters are being held accountable in court is admirable, said Lewis. However, the real causes of the unrest remain largely ignored.

“We must not confuse this with strategic success,” he said.

Lewis said the rise of far-right social media “influencers” over the past four years has kept alive many of the same conspiratorial themes that led to the violence on Jan. 6. The “most damning thing” was the lack of outrage from Republican members of Congress who were evacuated on Jan. 6 when rioters entered the building, he said.

“We are still talking about the same challenges as four years ago,” he said.