Two men were found guilty yesterday of charges, including felonies, related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Their actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the presidential election.
Joshua Christopher Doolin, 25; of Polk City, Florida, and Michael Steven Perkins, 39, of Plant City, Florida were each found guilty of civil disorder, a felony, entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds. Doolin was also convicted of theft of government property. Perkins was also convicted of assaulting a federal officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon and engaging in acts of physical violence while on the restricted Capitol grounds. U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols scheduled sentencing for July 13, 2023.
Both defendants were arrested on June 30, 2021, along with co-defendants, Joseph Hutchinson and Olivia Pollock. A fifth co-defendant, Jonathan Pollock, has not yet been apprehended. Joseph Hutchinson, Olivia Pollock, and Jonathan Pollock are being sought by law enforcement.
According to evidence and testimony presented at trial, Doolin and Perkins were on the west side of the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Shortly after 2:00 p.m., Hutchinson, pushed from behind by Perkins, charged a line of police officers in an effort to break through the line. Shortly thereafter, as officers descended into the crowd to assist another officer, Perkins picked up a flagpole and thrust it into the chest of an approaching officer. Perkins then raised the flagpole over his head swung it down, striking two officers in the back of their heads.
Doolin and Perkins then advanced closer to the Capitol building, as far as the Upper West Terrace of the building. Doolin acquired a Metropolitan Police Department crowd-control spray cannister and a United States Capitol Police riot shield, both of which carried with him on the Capitol grounds.
By about 4:15 p.m., Doolin had re-located close to the entrance to the passageway that connects the lower west terrace to the interior of the Capitol building. There, using the stolen riot shield, Doolin joined the crowd of rioters pushing against the police officers inside the passageway in an effort to break through and enter the Capitol building.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, with valuable assistance provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Tampa Field Office and Washington Field Office, with valuable assistance provided by the Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Capitol Police.
In the 26 months since Jan. 6, more than 999 individuals have been arrested on charges related to the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, including over 320 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.
