A federal appeals court upheld a trespassing charge against Jan. 6 rioters in a ruling on Tuesday.
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals made its decision in a 2-1 ruling. The panel rejected Couy Griffin’s argument that, in order for the trespass charge to be valid, he would have had to know that the area around the U.S. Capitol was secured for the purposes of protecting Vice President Mike Pence by the Secret Service on Jan. 6, 2021.
Griffin also said signs surrounding the building had been trampled by other people that day. He spent roughly two hours inside the restricted area, according to the court’s ruling.
He challenged 18 U.S.C. §1752(a)(1), the statute under which he was convicted, as it prohibits “knowingly enter[ing] or remain[ing] in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority to do so.”
“We hold that knowingly breaching the restricted area suffices, even without knowing the basis of the restriction—here, the presence of Vice President Pence at the Capitol on January 6—which merely confirms that such trespasses are within Congress’s legislative authority,” the court wrote.
Judge Cornelia Pillard, an Obama appointee, and Judge Judith Rogers, a Clinton appointee, sided against Griffin while Judge Greg Katsas, a Trump appointee, dissented, saying he would have ruled differently.
Judge Katsas reasoned there was no proof Griffin knew that Mr. Pence was present in the U.S. Capitol at the time of his arrival.
“Section 1752 has become broader and more complex over time, but none of the changes helps the government,” wrote Judge Katsas. “Trespassers unaware that someone like the President or Vice President is present are much less likely to pose a threat to those officials than are individuals who knowingly trespass into an area restricted to protect them.”
The charge was used against more than 1,400 Jan. 6 defendants, according to Politico.
Griffin was sentenced to 14 days in jail and then 12 months of supervised release.
The case could be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
It would take four justices to vote in favor of hearing the dispute for oral arguments to be granted.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.