So many insurrectionists, so little time! Some stick in your mind, and I wanted to check in on Richard “Bigo” Barnett of Arkansas. I will go into some of the more “colorful” exploits of Barnett in a moment. But Bigo Barnett is not going down without a fight. He might be the next Nathan Hale of the Jan 6th Insurrection! You see it goes like this. Bigo Barnett is not taking a plea deal, and he wants himself a federal trial!
Bigo broke into the Capitol Building, and he gained fame for propping his feet up on one of the desks in Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. And this is what he said afterwards in a New York Times video:
Nice to see he is a misogynist. He called Nancy Pelosi a “bitch.” Then, when he was arrested, Bigo stated this is what really happened:
"We marched down there. They start tear-gassing us. They start roughing up our people. It pissed some people off," he said. "They went to the front door, and they started demanding to be let inside.
"I wasn't even up there at that point. I was climbing the steps to see what was going on. When I got to the top, they had breached the doors and were trying to get in."
He told the news outlet he was simply looking for a bathroom within the Capitol when he stumbled upon Pelosi's office.
He added: "I threw my feet up on the desk at that point. I realized some assholes had cut me also and I bled on her envelope, so I picked up the envelope and put it in my pocket, and I put a quarter on the desk cause I'm not a thief."
Emphasis is mine. Now, Barnett is playing victim here, but he was ARMED with a stun gun.
On January 11, 2021, your affiant learned that law enforcement received a tip that in oneor more of the photographs of BARNETT seated in Speaker Pelosi’s office BARNETT wascarrying a stun gun. Your affiant reviewed the photographs again and determined the tip to beaccurate. As seen in the zoomed in box in the photograph below, the ZAP brand is clearly visibleon the stun gun tucked into BARNETT’s pants. Based on the brand on the weapon, and itsappearance, the weapon appeared to be a ZAP Hike N Strike 950,000 Volt Stun Gun WalkingStick.
On January 11, 2021, your affiant also learned that law enforcement conducted a search onJanuary 8, 2021, at the residence of BARNETT located on Mount Olive Road, Gravette, Arkansaspursuant to a search warrant issued by Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Erin L. Wiedemann in theWestern District of Arkansas. During the execution of that warrant, law enforcement observed theempty packaging for a ZAP Hike n’ Strike Hiking Staff High Voltage Stun Device inside the home.
This packaging is shown in the below photograph.
Based on the foregoing, your affiant submits that there is probable cause to believe that BARNETT violated 18 U.S.C. § 1752(a), which makes it a crime to (1) knowingly enter or remainin any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority to do; or (2) knowingly, and withintent to impede or disrupt the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions,engage in disorderly or disruptive conduct in, or within such proximity to, any restricted buildingor grounds when, or so that, such conduct, in fact, impedes or disrupts the orderly conduct ofGovernment business or official functions. Your affiant further submits that there is probable causeto believe that BARNETT violated 18 U.S.C. § 1752(b)(1)(A) which makes a violation of 18U.S.C. § 1752(a) a crime punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment where the person, during andin relation to the offense, uses or carries a deadly or dangerous weapon or firearm. For purposesof Section 1752 of Title 18, a restricted building includes a posted, cordoned off, or otherwiserestricted area of a building or grounds where the President or other person protected by the SecretService is or will be temporarily visiting; or any building or grounds so restricted in conjunctionwith an event designated as a special event of national significance.
The pics didn’t turn up in the block quote, but you can check them out at the link.
Did I also mention the guy is a white nationalist?
Anyway, poor old Bigo ended up in jail for a while, and he cried the blues that he was “tortured” while in custody. Here is what he claims that he experiencing:
Joseph D. McBride is Richard Barnett's attorney. He told 40/29 News that he filed an "emergency request" to Amnesty International and the American Civil Liberties Union calling for an investigation into Barnett's treatment in jail.
61-year-old Richard "Bigo" Barnett said that he was slammed into a concrete floor, threatened and has been kept in solitary confinement, according to complaints that were filed by McBride.
In the letter, McBride referred to the District Columbia Jail as "DC-GITMO," a reference to the Guantanamo Bay prison camp.
"Richard spent the entirety of his time at DC-GITMO in solitary confinement enduring disgusting unsanitary conditions that include the presence of black mold inside the cell where he was being held in solitary confinement, as well as beatings, sleep deprivation, getting robbed of his belongings," McBride said in the letter.
He continues, that "Barnett filed ten grievances against staff for these offenses, none of them were answered, and each one resulted in swift punishment and retaliation by the guards."
What a minute? Aren’t jail and prison guards part of the boys in blue? Don’t blue lives matter? Must be a hell of a come down from being “blue lives matter” to GITMO torturers!
And Bigo ain’t the sharpest knife in the insurrrectionist drawer, at least from what I can tell. Seems Bigo decided to give an interview to Russian TV in which he said the following:
Prosecutors also pointed to an interview Barnett and his attorney did with Russian state television this week in which the defendant was asked whether he would do it all over again.
After his attorney advised him to wait until legal proceedings were over before answering, Barnett responded, "I exercise my First Amendment rights every hour, every minute, and every day, and I will never quit expressing my First Amendment rights. I live and die by the Constitution of these United States.”
In response, prosecutors said the crimes Barnett were charged with were not constitutionally protected speech.
Last month, Barnett gave another exclusive interview to an Arkansas media outlet. Once again, Mr. “I was just looking for the bathroom” snarled his dumb defiance to the rest of us. It ain’t pretty.
Barnett faces seven federal charges, from disorderly conduct and theft of property to entering a restricted building with a deadly weapon.
“When you’re talking about the type of charges many of us got filed against us and the extremes they’ve gone to… it’s out of the ordinary,” Barnett said. “It’s not normal.”
Defense Attorney and former President of the Arkansas Association of Criminal Defense, Tony Pirani, is not involved in this case, but he said Barnett’s trial, in particular, will be monumental because so far, many others arrested on January 6 have taken plea deals.
It is going to be very telling about where we are and where we go as a country.
TONY PIRANI, LOCAL ATTORNEY
Barnett said he plans to try his case in federal court.
“At that time I was shocked,” Barnett said. “I mean, now, a lot of time has passed, and I think, ‘wow, is this what our country is all about?'”
Barnett said he never intended to storm the Capitol; he mainly went to hear former President Donald Trump speak.
However, he has a history of attending “Stop the Steal” rallies in Arkansas.
I think by being there I finally felt like I was stepping out and trying to make a difference.
RICHARD BARNETT, CHARGED IN THE CAPITOL INSURRECTION
Pirani said in all of his years of work in criminal defense, he has never seen anything like this insurrection or the legal aftermath.
“In terms of an evidentiary standpoint, I think there is very strong evidence on the government’s side,” the attorney said.
Barnett admits he was in the Capitol and that is him in the photos, but, he feels his actions were justified.
“As far as apologies or regret….no comment,” Barnett said. “You can pretty much guess how I feel, but I can’t comment on it.”
Right now, there is still no set date for Barnett’s federal trial. If convicted, he faces up to six or seven years under federal guidelines.
That’s as close as a lawyer saying, “You’re fucked!” as you are going to get for the record. And Barnett is still going to plow ahead and go to trial. He tries a lame excuse for what he did, then claims he was justified, and finally plays victim.
And he won’t shut up.
The prosecution must love this case.