Arkansas man convicted in Jan. 6 insurrection case

Jan. 23—Richard "Bigo" Barnett, who propped a foot up on Nancy Pelosi's desk and left the House speaker a taunting note with a sexist slur, was found guilty Monday of all eight counts he was facing in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol two years ago.

Barnett, 62, of Gravette, Arkansas, who expressed some regret for his actions that day when he testified during his trial last week in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., seemed less apologetic outside the courthouse after the jury's decision.

Barnett termed the trial "an injustice" because the judge had refused to grant him a change of venue and stated an intention to appeal the conviction. He is scheduled to be sentenced May 3 on counts of civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding and six others pertaining to his actions that day, including theft of government property for taking a piece of Pelosi's mail.

Barnett and his attorneys attempted to paint his involvement in the riot as little more than a case of trespassing. The retired firefighter testified last week that he regretted having attended the then-president's "Stop the Steal" rally that proceeded the Jan. 6 insurrection, referring to its consequences as "two years of lost life" and "misery" for his family.

Video supported his contention that he was swept into the Capitol by the surging mob as he approached an entrance. He told jurors that he was actually just looking for a restroom when he happened to enter Pelosi's office.

He claimed that two news photographers there suggested he just "act natural," so he propped a foot on her desk, leading to the photo that brought him notoriety that day.

"Did it dawn on you that what you were doing could cause some trouble?" his attorney asked him, according to an Associated Press account of the trial.

"I was just in the moment," he answered, adding that he was "just kind of going with the flow."

Prosecutors maintained that he was carrying a stun gun he had purchased a week earlier in preparation for his attendance at the rally and that he left a note in Pelosi's office that read: "Nancy, Bigo was here."

Barnett can be heard on a video recording of the riot, entering the Capitol shouting: "We have no choice!"

After the storming of the Capitol, Barnett was recorded on video proudly exclaiming to the crowd through a bullhorn: "We took back our house, and I took Nancy Pelosi's office."

His attorney's efforts to portray him as just "a crazy guy from Arkansas" guilty of little more than trespassing were undercut by the prosecution's contention that he had a history of arming himself at political rallies.