Judge in Proud Boys trial denies claims government withheld footage
Jack Birle
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District Court Judge Tim Kelly denied two motions aimed at dismissing a case against one of the defendants in the Proud Boys seditious conspiracy trial related to criminal actions during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
Attorneys for Dominic Pezzola unsuccessfully attempted to get the trial dismissed or declared a mistrial by alleging the government was withholding security footage of the riot.
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Kelly ripped the claims, saying they “lack legal and factual support,” and swiftly denied the two motions in a court filing late Sunday.
The judge contends the footage, which aired on Fox News’s Tucker Carlson Tonight in March, which Kelly’s legal counsel was allegedly unfamiliar with, was provided to the lawyers by the government in September 2021 and January 2023.
“Whether Pezzola’s counsel viewed the footage is not within the Government’s control and so cannot support a conclusion that it ‘suppressed’ the evidence,” Kelly wrote in the filing.
Kelly also called Pezzola’s conclusions about the government withholding information “bizarre” and said his claims for a dismissal were “neither material nor detailed and specific.”
“Pezzola’s claims are neither material nor detailed and specific, so an evidentiary hearing is inappropriate. From there, it follows that dramatic relief in the form of dismissal or a mistrial — indeed any relief at all — is similarly unwarranted,” the judge wrote.
Pezzola has been charged with eight criminal counts, including seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, destruction of government property, robbery, obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder, and aiding and abetting.
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Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and members Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Pezzola are on trial for seditious conspiracy charges for their roles in the riot. All five have pleaded not guilty.
The trial has experienced delays, with numerous disputes between the prosecution and defense attorneys. One of the most recent delays occurred when prosecutors inadvertently revealed classified messages to defense attorneys for the Proud Boys.