Judges Exasperated Because Jan. 6 Defendants Keep Using Crazy Conspiracy Theories

I don’t know if there’s any way to count the number of nutso conspiracy theories people have come up with over the years but I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if there were as many theories as there are people who actually believe them. Of course, January 6 insurrectionists are awash in these unfounded theories and it’s driving justices at the federal court in Washington, D.C. up the wall.

So they are fighting back, Raw Story reports. They are confronting the claims made by Jan. 6 defendants and their supporters and speaking up to counter the bizarre and often ridiculous claims. This includes the dumb claim that the defendants are “hostages,” or that the Capitol riot was somehow spurred by government informants.

Royce Lamberth, one of the justices in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, recently said during one sentencing hearing for one of the Jan.6 defendants that the court “is accustomed to defendants who refuse to accept that they did anything wrong,” adding, “But in my 37 years on the bench, I cannot recall a time when such meritless justifications of criminal activity have gone mainstream.”

What this means, of course, is there are far too many gullible people who’ll disbelieve actual facts but hang on every word Alex Jones says. Maybe some of these people were dropped on their heads at birth, or maybe they haven’t received a proper education. Who knows? But they seem to be entirely too common. We could do with a few less.

“i have been dismayed to see outright distoritions and outright falsehoods creep into the public consciousness,” lamberth added. “i have been shocked to watch some public figures try to rewrite history, claiming rioters behaved in an orderly fashion like ordinary tourists, or martyrizing convicted jan. 6 defendants as political prisoners or even, incredibly, hostages. That is all preposterous.”

Lamberth has company. At a sentencing hearing last month, Judge Ana Reyes excoriated rioters who compared themselves to America’s Founding Fathers.

“i feel the need to give everyone a certain history lesson. because there are people who believe and continue to believe that the election was stolen and that it is in the best tradition of our American Founding Fathers to rebel against tyranny,” Reyes said.

“i suggest that you read president washington’s farewell address. because in it he warned americans to ‘guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.’ and he warned, “there will always be reasons to distrust the patriotism who in any quarter may endeavor to weaken the bonds of our democratic experiment,” she continued.

Reyes admitted she’s also deeply conflicted by the challenges that come with sentencing defendants who have no criminal record prior to Jan. 6.

“i hate this. i hate all of this. i hate having to have these conversations. i hate that these conversations exist. i hate having to talk to two law-abiding individuals in this way,” reyes said. “i can’t tell you how much i just hate all of it.”

Unfortunately, as a joint survey between the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and The Brookings Institute found, in October 2023, that three-quarters of Americans surveyed believed that American democracy is at risk in the 2024 presidential election.

But that’s not all the survey found. QAnon beliefs, which PRRI has been tracking since 2021, are also increasing significantly (rising from 14 percent to 23 percent), while there was a sizable decrease in those who reject QAnon beliefs (from 40 percent to 29 percent). Unsurprisingly, Republicans are twice as likely as Democrats to be QAnon Faithful (29 percent vs. 14 percent). They are also three times less likely to reject QAnon beliefs (14 percent vs. 43 percent).

So it looks like these unfortunate justices will be sentencing more of these ignorant fools whose beliefs nearly derailed the U.S. And for the less patient among us, it’s going to seem like a very long way to the 2024 election. Even worse, depending on who is elected, these beliefs may explode.

Ugh.