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(LifeSiteNews) – Republican Michigan gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley pleaded not guilty Thursday to all charges he faces in connection to his presence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, in what his supporters say is a politically motivated prosecution.
Kelley, a real estate broker and Christian conservative activist running to unseat Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, was arrested last month in an FBI raid on his home. The Detroit News reports that he faces four misdemeanor counts: knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct, knowingly engaging in any act of physical violence against person or property in a restricted building or grounds, and willfully injuring or committing depredation against property of the United States. He could serve up to a year in prison and have to pay up to $400,000 if convicted.
More specifically, prosecutors claim that Kelley encouraged yelling, gestured participants toward the stairs, and removed a covering from a temporary structure outside the Capitol during the riot that broke out following former President Donald Trump’s “March to Save America” rally, which was meant to demand that Congress delay certification of the 2020 presidential election results over allegations of vote fraud in several states. The feds also claim he “film[ed] the crowd assaulting and pushing past U.S. Capitol police officers” and was among a crowd that climbed stairs to a building after forcing police to retreat, the Associated Press adds.
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Kelley, who has described his prosecution as a “political witch hunt,” denies entering the Capitol and pleaded “not guilty to all counts” during a video court hearing Thursday.
“That was a First Amendment activity by a majority of those people, myself included,” Kelley said during Wednesday’s debate with three other GOP gubernatorial contenders, the AP reports. “We were there protesting the government because we don’t like the results of the 2020 election, the process of how it happened. And we have a First Amendment right. And that’s what 99% of the people were there for that day.”
While his case is pending, Judge Robin Meriweather has ordered Kelley to surrender his firearms, which he had requested to keep for personal protection due to his status as a political candidate.
More than a year after the fact, Democrats continue to use the January 6 riot as a cudgel against Republicans. Viral videos showed people engaging in physical altercations with police, pushing against security barricades, breaking through windows, trespassing in congressional offices, and climbing on walls, causing the vote certification to be suspended and lawmakers to be evacuated from the chambers. Other videos, however, showed that many were let into the Capitol by police and simply walked the halls after the initial breach. Several people died, but the only victim of direct, intentional violence was a Trump supporter named Ashlii Babbitt.
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Trump’s political opponents blamed him for “inciting” the riot, leading to an unsuccessful impeachment attempt. Yet despite the FBI failing to find evidence that the violence was planned or organized, more than a dozen Democrat committee investigations into the event have continued ever since, with hundreds of people arrested and many conservatives expressing concerns about their treatment and disproportionate, selective punishment.
Of the four Republicans vying to face Whitmer, Kelley currently places second, at 15 percent to businesswoman and America’s Voice News commentator Tudor Dixon’s 26 percent.