The Son of a Capitol Rioter is horrified by his father’s release

Almost four years to the day since his father was taken into custody for his part in the January 6 riot of the CapitolJackson Reffitt watched in complete shock as President Donald Trump signed an executive order that penalties forgiven and commuted for his father and about 1,500 others insurrection.

Reffitt has spent most of the past four years in hiding, still moving every few months. He was the person who alert the FBI about his father’s involvement in the insurrection. Jackson’s father, Guy Reffitt, was a member of the Texas Three Percenter group when he stormed the Capitol wearing body armor and carrying a gun and zip ties. He was caught on camera urging other rioters to storm the Capitol building and told members of his militia group that he intended to drag House Speaker Nancy Pelosi out of the building for the ankles, “with his head beating every step in the way.”

“Trump himself gave him a presidential pardon to set him free. This validation is the kind of once-in-a-lifetime experience he’s never received again,” Reffitt tells WIRED. “I can’t imagine what he’ll be willing to do now. It could be a lot worse.”

Reffitt is “terrified” of what will happen next, and has armed himself with a handgun and a shotgun to protect himself and his boyfriend. In recent years, he has been targeted, harassed and threatened online.

Since Trump has pardoned everyone, the threats have become even more intense.

“(In the last 24 hours) it’s worse than ever,” Reffitt tells WIRED. “I just think because, once again, the validation that Trump brings is just making people that much more emboldened to just say vile, disgusting shit.”

Reffitt isn’t the only family member of an inmate released Jan. 6 who is worried about the fallout from Trump’s pardons. Tasha Adams, the ex-wife of Oath Keeper Stewart Rhodes who had her 22-year sentence for seditious conspiracy commuted by Trump, is also worried about what could happen. “Stewart is out of jail now and, frankly, I could really use a little bit of a running back, if that’s the case,” Adams wrote on her GoFundMe page Tuesday, hours after her ex-husband was released from prison.

The investigation into the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol has become the largest in the history of the Department of Justice, and has left several far-right militia groups in the country in ruins. But with a single stroke of his pen on Monday night, Trump revived the militia movement, freeing its most prominent figures, including Rhodes and The proud head of the boy Enrique Tarrio.

“One of the things that worries me the most is the risk of the groups that were decimated after J6 coming back stronger, especially since many of them had their sentences commuted or were pardoned,” says Luke Baumgartner, a researcher at George Washington University. The program on extremism. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the Oath Keepers start making more appearances, and see the Proud Boys step up their culture war tactics, especially against the LGBTQ community, as we’ve seen before. Their leaders are free , they have a lot to recover from, and they probably feel vindicated.”

Do you have a tip?

Are you a family member of a January 6 prisoner who has been released? We would like to hear from you. Using a cell phone or computer without work, contact David Gilbert at [email protected] or safely on Signal in DavidGilbert.01

Guy Reffitt was the first revolutionary to go on trial for his actions on January 6 and initially received a sentence of seven years and three months, which was reduced by seven months in December following a Supreme Court ruling that led to the dismissal of an obstruction charge. against him.

“I am a very strong Patriot, with fabulous support from the Patriot Warriors as we navigate troubled waters,” Reffitt wrote to an acquaintance from prison in a text message submitted by the prosecution at his December sentencing.