Ex-police officer faces jury trial on Capitol riot charges

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jury selection is underway in the trial of a former Virginia police officer charged with storming the U.S. Capitol with a fellow officer who has agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors. The federal judge presiding over the trial of former Rocky Mount police officer Thomas Robertson said he hopes to finish picking a jury on Monday. The town fired Robertson and fellow officer Jacob Fracker, who pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge and could be a key prosecution witness. Robertson’s trial will be the third among hundreds of people charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The first two trials both ended with convictions.