Capitol insurrection: Rioter cites bible in defense

Months since the Capitol insurrection last January 6, hundreds of rioters involved have been arrested by the authorities and are awaiting their respective trials. One particular rioter who is set to go to trial cited the bible as part of her defense in a recent report.

The Daily Beast reports that Pauline Bauer, who is accused of her involvement in the Capitol insurrection, has chosen to represent herself in the upcoming trial. Bauer is being charged for obstruction of Congress, violent entry, and disruptive conduct. Prosecutors allege that Bauer reportedly told the Capitol Police to bring out Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi so they could hang her.

The report cites that Bauer is using a sovereign citizen defense, meaning that she does not recognize the laws of the US government and is acting under “divine guidance.”

Prosecutors went on to allege that Bauer tried to arrange buses to transport people to DC for the rally of now-former President Donald Trump, which would ultimately lead to the insurrection hours later. The report went on to note that Bauer demanded to represent herself in her trial, threatened a court clerk with prison time, and declared herself as a “self-governed” individual with special legal privileges.

“I am here, by special divine appearance, a living soul,” Bauer told the judge at a Zoom appearance ahead of the trial at the court. “I do not stand under the law. Under Genesis 1, God gave man dominion over the law,” Bauer added.

Previously, the FBI has carried out a new strategy to identify and arrest the rioters that not only assaulted the Capitol Police but also members of the press that were covering the insurrection. One rioter, Joshua Dillon Haynes, was charged for destroying a journalist’s equipment and bragging about it to his friends in text messages following the riots.

“We attacked the CNN reporters and the fake news and destroyed tens of thousands of dollars of their video and television equipment. Here’s a picture behind me of the pile we made out of it,” Haynes reportedly said to his friends. Haynes is reportedly the fifth arrest made with charges of assaulting members of the press that were covering the riots.