There are so many members of the extremist Proud Boys organization facing trial for conspiracy charges tied to the Jan. 6 attack of the U.S. Capitol that a federal judge wrestled Wednesday with the very question of how he would physically manage a courtroom with so many co-defendants present at once.
So far, five of the six Proud Boys charged with leading and plotting an organized conspiracy that would have overturned the will of more than 80 million voters by force have entered a not guilty plea.
The latest defendants to be arraigned in the historic case are members Ethan Nordean, aka “Rufio Panman,” and Zachary Rhel. They appeared before U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee.
Related: Feds indict Proud Boys leader Henry Tarrio—finally
Nordean and Rehl, like their alleged co-conspirators Dominic “Spaz” Pezzola, Charles Donohoe, and Joseph Biggs, vow they are not guilty of the conspiracy charge as well as nearly a dozen other felonies including assaulting police, aiding and abetting the obstruction of law enforcement, destroying government property, and more.
The group’s ringleader, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, was charged alongside them in a superseding indictment earlier this month, but he has yet to be arraigned. Tarrio will appear before Kelly on March 30. He has denied all wrongdoing and is expected to join the chorus of “not guilty” pleas ringing out in the aftermath of the Capitol assault.
Kelly’s question about how to host the Proud Boys conspiracy trial now slated for May speaks to the sprawling nature of the Justice Department’s probe.
Several hundred people have been charged by federal prosecutors for Jan. 6 with low- to high-level offenses.
But sitting at the very top of this formidable stack are indictments against those members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers who U.S. attorneys say descended on Washington, D.C., with well-funded plans, plenty of weapons, lots of local resources, and deadly intent to stop proceedings necessary to the nation’s peaceful transfer of power.
Related: Oath Keeper: I was ready to protect Trump by force
And to top it all off, prosecutors have indicated this week that a third round of charges may very soon be added to the Proud Boys conspiracy case thanks in part to evidence law enforcement seized on March 8. This was the same day Tarrio was arrested in Miami.
COVID-19 restrictions, though relaxed across Washington, D.C., of late, are still putting a pinch on in-person appearances in federal buildings. On Wednesday, Kelly aired his concerns that attempting to try all of the defendants together might not be possible for this reason.
He could potentially try four at a time, he said Wednesday, but promised to expeditiously research the precedent and issue a decision after all parties had their input.
During Nordean and Rehl’s arraignment, prosecutors urged the judge to keep the defendants in a single group for trial, noting it would be extremely difficult to parse them out since all took orders from Tarrio on and in the runup to Jan. 6.
But they did ask the judge to reset the current May 18 trial date. Tarrio and Pezzola have already asked for an extension, saying they would not be ready reviewing the huge troves of discovery by May. The government did not oppose them.
Related: Tarrio back in jail as feds find chilling plans to storm federal buildings
Nordean’s defense attorney, Nicholas Smith, warned the judge Wednesday that he would reject an attempt to push out the trial date any further. Nordean, he noted, has been jailed since his arrest, and his right to a speedy trial has been violated repeatedly, Smith alleged.
“We don’t think there’s anything new we need to do before trial. If the government thinks its case is strong enough against Mr. Nordean, we should to go to trial. If they don’t think that, I don’t blame them for that,” Smith said.
The comment drew a light rebuke from Kelly that Smith “keep it to the facts.”
Smith said he planned on filing a motion that would distinguish how Nordean was unlike the other defendants.
Kelly gave Nordean until Friday to make his case against the government’s motion to reset the trial date and gave the government until March 30 to respond. The next hearing will then be held on April 5. All of the defendants charged in the Proud Boys conspiracy case are expected to appear that day.
Nordean was arrested in February 2021 and is the self-professed “Sergeant of Arms” for the Seattle division of the Proud Boys.
According to court records, evidence amassed by investigators has included a bevy of Nordean’s texts and communications with fellow Proud Boys on social messaging apps like Telegram.
Related: Jan. 6 warnings held back by officials at DHS, watchdog finds
That included messages well after the attack. As arrests started raining down on the extremist group, Nordean unleashed a tirade against former President Donald Trump.
Accusing the president of misleading him, Nordean wrote in one message on Jan. 20: “We are now and always have been on our own. So glad he was able to pardon a bunch of degenerates as his last move and shit on us on the way out … Fuck you Tump you left us on the battle field bloody and alone."
He continued: “i've followed this guy for 4 years and given everything and lost it all. Yes he woke us up, but he led us to believe some great justice was upon us … and it never happened … Now I've got some of my good friends and myself facing jail time cuz we followed this guys lead and never questioned it."
Nordean was allegedly involved in recruiting members to Proud Boys and would fundraise regularly. Nordean’s indictment described weeks he spent gathering military-style equipment before Jan. 6.
Charging documents note how Nordean donned all black on Jan. 6 and wore a tactical vest and bullhorn. He was also in front of the group when marching on the Capitol. Through encrypted apps, he often led the group with instructions on what to do next or where to enter the Capitol. His leadership position was decided on Jan. 4 following Tarrio’s arrest in D.C.
But Nordean was more than ready for the job. According to prosecutors, Tarrio had already chosen Nordean, Biggs, Rehl, Donohoe and at least one other person to form the Proud Boys Ministry of Self Defense (MOSD).
Seized communications, prosecutors said, have shown how Nordean was selected to fill in for Tarrio on the ground on Jan. 6 once Tarrio was incapacitated.
Nordean, also a former bodybuilder, at one point took up a spot near the front of the Capitol and stalked up and down a police line to intimidate officers and rile up the crowd, his indictment alleges.
Long before Jan. 6, Nordean was also on social media calling for militia groups it to join the Million MAGA March on Nov. 16. His posts bubbled over with claims of election fraud, often echoing Trump’s false assertions.
On Nov. 27, Nordean posted online: “We tried playing nice and by the rules, now you will deal with the monster you created. The spirit of 1776 has resurfaced and has created groups like the Proud Boys and we will not be extinguished. We grow like a flame that fuels us and spread like love that guides us. We are unstopping, unrelenting and now … unforgiving. Good luck to all you traitors of this country we so deeply love … you’re going to need it.”
As for Rehl—leader of Proud Boys Philadelphia chapter and reported son and grandson to Philadelphia Police officers—he, like the other defendants, allegedly conspired at length on encrypted apps.
On Dec. 30, during a video call where members were mulling over new recruits to MOSD and Tarrio told prospects they could “fit in or fuck off,” Rehl rallied behind Tarrio, saying that Jan. 6 would be a “completely different operation” and that it would not be a “night march” where members would just “flex their arms and shit.”
Rehl, prosecutors say, also raised over $5,000 in less than a week for travel expenses the group dubbed “patriot events.”
He was also made part of a special “Boots on the Ground” encrypted chat on Jan. 5 and allegedly distributed hard-to-track Chinese-made radios.
