money Jury convicts Jan. 6 rioter who propped his feet up on a Nancy Pelosi staffer's desk
A jury on Monday convicted an Arkansas man who became infamous for propping up his feet on the desk of a staffer of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
A jury in Washington convicted Richard “Bigo” Barnett of eight counts, including felony charges of civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding.
The notorious feet-on-desk image marked Barnett as one of the stand-out characters of the attack by supporters of former President Donald Trump.
Barnett vowed to appeal and protested the verdict by telling reporters: "This is not a jury of my peers."
In a video Twitter post by New York Times reporter Matthew Rosenberg shared on Jan. 6, Barnett is heard saying he wrote Pelosi a "nasty" note and took a personalized envelope from her office after leaving a quarter on her desk — suggesting his actions shouldn't be classified as theft.
Barnett testified in court last Thursday that he was “going with the flow” that day and threw his feet up on the desk after a photographer told him to “act natural."
“I probably shouldn’t have put my feet on the desk,” Barnett told the D.C. jury.
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What is the verdict?
Of the eight charges Barnett faced, the most serious were felony counts of civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding. He was also charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with deadly or dangerous weapons –a stun gun with spikes concealed within a collapsible walking stick.
He was convicted on each count.
Who is Richard Barnett?
Barnett is a retired firefighter from Gravette, Arkansas — or, a "crazy guy from Arkansas," according to defense attorney Joseph McBride.
Barnett was an advocate for Second Amendment rights and an active supporter of law enforcement in the area, according to the Southwest Times Record, an Arkansas daily paper affiliated with USA TODAY.
In the aftermath of the Capitol attack, Gravette Mayor Kurt Maddox spoke out against Barnett's actions, the Times Record reported.
“This is not Gravette, Arkansas or the people of Gravette," Maddox said.
What did the government and defense argue?
Prosecutors sought to poke holes in Barnett's story about his values and time in the Capitol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gordon asked Barnett whether he "loves" the Constitution (Barnett said he does), and whether Barnett could name the Third Amendment (He could not). Gordon also pointed to inconsistencies in Barnett's narrative about ending up in Pelosi's office. Barnett said he went looking for friends on the center steps of the Capitol and was "pushed" into the building; then, he went looking for a bathroom. Gordon contended Barnett never asked for directions to a restroom and had several opportunities to leave Capitol before entering the building.
McBride, Barnett's attorney, sarcastically described Barnett's case to the jury as the "most famous trespass case of all time.” He argued Wednesday that Barnett didn’t hurt anybody on Jan. 6 and the stun gun he carried with him was harmless, because it was broken.
Dig deeper
Who is Richard Barnett?: Man photographed at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's desk is from Arkansas
Barnett hearing: Man with feet up on Pelosi's desk erupts at his Capitol riot hearing
Capitol riot selfies: What their selfie obsession revealed about the psychology of the pro-Trump rioters
Capitol riot arrests: See who's been charged across the U.S.
Contributing: Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: January 6 rioter who put feet on Nancy Pelosi staffer's desk convicted
