Hundreds who raided Capitol still free, moms testify at fentanyl hearing: 5 Things podcast

On today's episode of the 5 Things podcast: Hundreds who raided the Capitol are still free. Why?

USA TODAY National Correspondent for Extremism and Emerging Issues Will Carless looks at why many identifiable Capitol rioters have not been arrested. Plus, closing arguments continue in the murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, moms affected by the fentanyl crisis testify before Congress, the U.S. intelligence community says it's unlikely that a foreign adversary caused symptoms linked to 'Havana Syndrome, and Kiss announces their final concerts.

Podcasts: True crime, in-depth interviews and more USA TODAY podcasts right here.

Hit play on the player above to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript below. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.

Taylor Wilson:

Good morning. I'm Taylor Wilson and this is 5 Things you need to know Thursday, the 2nd of March 2023. Today, a closer look at why hundreds of arrests are still lagging after January 6th. Plus, closing arguments continue in the murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, and the US Intelligence community speaks out on Havana Syndrome.

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More than two years after the January 6th Capitol riot, hundreds of identifiable people remain free. So why is that? I spoke with USA TODAY National Correspondent for Extremism and Emerging Issues, Will Carless, to find out. Will, thanks for hopping on the show.

Will Carless:

Thanks for having me on.

Taylor Wilson:

So you reported that lots of January 6th rioters remain free, even though they're wanted by the FBI. How many people are we talking about?

Will Carless:

Well, it's not just that they're wanted, it's that they've also been conclusively and definitively identified, at least that's the claims of these online investigators who call themselves, "The Sedition Hunters." They say look, the FBI has this website that lists all of these hundreds of people. I think it's about 600 or so people who are wanted in relation to crimes committed on January 6th. And these groups claim that they've identified at least 100 of them positively to the FBI, sent them their names and titles and employment and all the rest of it, and that they also claim they've identified at least hundreds of others who are not even listed on the FBI's wanted website, but who they say are on camera or on video committing crimes on January 6th.

Taylor Wilson:

Wow. So lots of people that we're talking about here. So this obviously begs the question, Will, why are they still free?

Will Carless:

Well, we looked into that and there are several different reasons. I think chief among them, a former federal prosecutor that we talked to said look, just because they haven't been arrested yet does not mean that they're not going to be arrested. Since the beginning of the year, we've seen a few dozen people arrested. And when you look at the charging documents and you look at the indictments, it says that they were first interviewed, in some cases in the days after January 6th. So these cases take a long time to build.

What's curious about it is that the FBI is still saying these people are wanted, we need information about them. And of course, these researchers have said look, we've told you who they are. We've told you a year in some cases, almost two years ago, this is Jane Smith and she lives at this address and this is what she did, and here's a whole portfolio of evidence. There are some other reasons. In this country, obviously we have a constitutional right to a speedy trial. And what that means is the moment you charge somebody, you have to start hitting deadlines. For example, you have to indict them within 30 days. And that's an immense strain and pressure on our judicial system and our legal system. And so, it's a case of resources in a lot of these cases.

Taylor Wilson:

And so, Will, what do we expect in the coming months and years? Could arrests still come? Are these cases going to go right up against the statutes of limitations? What's the timeline look like coming up?

Will Carless:

Yeah, that's a great question. So the prosecutor we talked to said look, in normal circumstances, it's not at all unusual for people to be arrested two, three days before their statute of limitation runs out. And that's simply because there's a queue, there's a line, and these people are in that line. And because of the realities of what I just talked about in terms of the building these cases and bringing these cases, often it goes right up against the wire. So if that holds true, I think absolutely we're going to see these cases continue to come in over the course of the next, I think it's three years that they have to bring these cases. They'll continue to come through, and probably more people who aren't even on that wanted list will come through.

So it's just this weird situation where we know who these people are, there's video evidence of them, very much looks like they're committing federal crimes, they're wanted by the FBI, but yet they still walk free more than two years later.

Taylor Wilson:

And what are lawmakers in Congress doing at this point when it comes to January 6th and its aftermath?

Will Carless:

So there was additional funding provided last year to increase the resources for US attorneys, and specifically to bring these cases against January 6th. Now, on the other hand, you now have a Republican controlled Congress that definitely really doesn't want to be talking about January 6th in the next two years as we run up against the next presidential election, particularly if they have a candidate in the form of Donald Trump, who, as far as many people are concerned, is largely responsible,or at least encouraged the events of January 6th.

So the Republicans in Congress are doing everything they can to try and, if not quash these investigations, to slow them down or to stymie them. My sources in the DOJ and FBI say that's not going to make any difference. They're going to continue along this track until everybody is brought to justice. But as my reporting in this story shows, they've got a big hill to climb still. There are still hundreds, if not thousands, of people out there who committed crimes and they've yet to be charged.

Taylor Wilson:

All right. Will Carless covers extremism and emerging issues for USA TODAY. Thanks for the great insight, Will, really appreciate it.

Will Carless:

Always a pleasure. Thank you.

♦

Taylor Wilson:

The prosecution gave its closing arguments yesterday in the double murder trial of former South Carolina attorney, Alex Murdaugh. The 54-year old has pleaded not guilty to counts involving the murders of his wife and son. After listening to more than five weeks of testimony, the jury, ahead of closing arguments, traveled to the house where Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were killed. Alex Murdaugh initially told police he was not at dog kennels on the property before finding the bodies there, but he admitted in court that his voice could be heard on a video taken on his son's phone minutes before prosecutors say the killings happened.

Prosecutors have said Murdaugh faced legal and financial troubles in the years leading up to the murders. They argued he killed his family to stop a gathering storm from ruining his family's legacy. In his closing argument, prosecutor Creighton Waters said Murdaugh fooled an entire community.

Creighton Waters:

On the other hand has fooled everyone, everyone, everyone who thought they were close to him, everyone who thought they knew who he was. He's fooled them all, and he fooled Maggie and Paul, too, and they paid for it with their lives. Don't let him fool you, too.

Taylor Wilson:

After the defense wraps up its closing argument, the prosecution will have one more opportunity to rebut any new claims introduced by the defense before the jury begins deliberating.

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The fentanyl crisis is slamming America. The drug is the leading cause of death in Americans aged 18 to 45, and according to the most recent federal data, more than 70,000 people died of a fentanyl overdose in 2021. That's more than twice as many as 2019. A House judiciary subcommittee examined the issue yesterday, and heard from mothers affected by the crisis. Moms like Rebecca Kiessling, who lost two sons to fentanyl.

Rebecca Kiessling:

There's parents who are, they paint chairs purple and they make shrines for their children. And I saw that, and I thought, I don't ever want to have purple chairs. I don't need a reminder. I don't want to remember my sons for how they died, I want to remember them for how they lived. But I'm here testifying today because there are other people who need to remember. I don't need a purple chair in my house. Congress needs a purple chair. The White House needs a purple chair to never forget about all those who are being slaughtered. This is a war.

Taylor Wilson:

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid, 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine, according to the CDC. You can read more with a link in today's show notes.

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After a six-year investigation, the US intelligence community said yesterday that it's very unlikely that a foreign adversary caused the physical symptoms of so-called, "Havana Syndrome." Hundreds of US employees reported a wide range of symptoms and injuries beginning in Havana, Cuba in 2016, and stretching across 96 countries. Illnesses ranged from severe headache to hearing loss and other neurological problems. Yesterday's intelligence report addressed the theory that intelligence and diplomatic workers came down with often debilitating illnesses as the result of targeted energy waves or some other secret technology developed by an American adversary. The report at least partially contradicts a preliminary finding by intelligence officials in February of last year, that a high-tech device shooting pulsed electromagnetic energy or ultrasound waves could be causing some of the symptoms.

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Well, it's the end of the road for Kiss, probably. The band told the Howard Stern Show yesterday that their final tour will take place this fall, leading up to the final shows at Madison Square Garden in December. The band's goodbye tour kicked off in January of 2019, and was originally set to end at Madison Square Garden in the summer of 2021 before COVID related postponements. This final leg will begin October 29th in Austin, before moving through Los Angeles, Knoxville, and much of Canada, before hitting New York. Ahead of a previous concert in Milwaukee, co-lead singer, Gene Simmons, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about his preparations before shows.

Gene Simmons:

You have to keep it honest, and so you just dive into the deep end of the pool and make it happen. I don't do vocal warm-ups, I don't do any of that stuff. I just put on more makeup and higher heels than you ever wore, they're literally seven inches high, and wear about 40 pounds of additional armor and studs and all that stuff, and put on the best show in the world, period.

Taylor Wilson:

Tickets for the final dates of the End of the Road tour will be available March 6th at 10:00 AM Eastern for a presale, and the general sale begins on March 10th. For more, check out the link in today's show notes.

And thanks for listening to 5 Things. You can find us every day of the week right here, wherever you're listening right now. I'm back tomorrow with more of 5 Things from USA TODAY.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 100-plus Jan. 6 rioters still free, final Kiss concerts: 5 Things podcast