Juries aren’t swayed by defenses in Capitol riot trials

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Finding a viable trial defense hasn’t been easy for rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol. Their arguments aren’t swaying jurors who are hearing testimony and viewing evidence. Of the nearly 100 riot defendants who have elected to a trial by jury, none has been fully acquitted. A retired New York police officer, Thomas Webster, was the first Capitol riot defendant to be tried on an assault charge and the first to present a jury with a self-defense argument. His May 2022 conviction proved to be a bellwether for the dozens of trials that followed. Webster is now serving a 10-year prison sentence.