In courtroom Friday, earlier than the case was handed to the jury, Assistant U.S. Lawyer Michael Gordon pored over Barnett’s model of Jan. 6 and poked holes in his testimony, visibly angering Barnett.
Barnett, who a day earlier had mentioned he would apologize to Pelosi, D-Calif., if she have been in courtroom, admitted throughout cross-examination that when a police officer instructed him he wanted to depart her workplace he replied: “It is advisable to hand over communism.”
Barnett additionally admitted to telling an officer within the Capitol: “We’re in a battle. It is advisable to choose a aspect. Don’t be on the fallacious aspect otherwise you’re going to get harm.”
Defending his actions, Barnett mentioned he did not imagine he had violated the regulation on Jan. 6.
“I made some dangerous errors and I remorse them however I don’t suppose I broke the regulation,” Barnett mentioned Friday. “I really feel like a f—— fool.”
Requested Monday if the choice to testify could have backfired on Barnett on condition that the jury solely wanted a couple of hours to convict his shopper on all counts, McBride mentioned, “We thought that the choice to testify was unequivocally the suitable one.”
“He had a narrative that wanted to be instructed,” McBride mentioned. “Folks wanted to know why he got here right here, what his intentions have been, and what he did whereas he was right here. The person acquired up there and he instructed the reality, and it didn’t work out for him, however on the finish of the day now we have no regrets about that alternative.”
Two years after the riot, the FBI and the Justice Division’s investigation into the Capitol assault has yielded 900 arrests and almost 500 responsible pleas.
Dareh Gregorian contributed.
