Jan. 6 cases of 3 other area residents proceeding

Jan. 18—The trial of a Gravette, Arkansas, man — famously photographed with a foot propped up on the desk of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the Capitol riot two years ago — has entered its second week of testimony.

Richard "Bigo" Barnett, 62, is being tried on eight counts in federal court for the District of Columbia, including a new charge of civil disorder that was tacked on in December.

The added count states that Barnett interfered, or attempted to interfere, with an officer from the Metropolitan Police Department attempting to control the crowd at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The other charges Barnett faces are obstruction of an official proceeding, entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with such a weapon, entering and remaining in certain rooms in the Capitol building, disorderly conduct in the Capitol building, parading or demonstrating in a Capitol building, and theft of government property.

Unlike Kyler Bard, of Seneca, Barnett is not accused of engaging in any actual violence, but federal prosecutors maintain that Barnett bought a stun gun at a Bass Pro Shop in Rogers, Arkansas, a week before the Jan. 6 insurrection and brought it with him to Washington.

Barnett was arrested after returning to Arkansas, but the stun gun was never recovered. The theft charge pertains to an envelope he purportedly removed from the Capitol building. Barnett spent a few months in jail before being released on bond pending his trial this month.

The cases of two other area residents charged in the Jan. 6 riot remain pending in federal court for the District of Columbia.

Benjamen S. Burlew, 42, of Miami, Oklahoma, is scheduled to go to trial Dec. 1 on eight offenses, including two counts stemming from an alleged assault of Associated Press photographer John Minchillo on the Capitol steps.

Burlew is accused of grabbing Minchillo by the chest and a leg and throwing him over a wall of the steps "to the lawn several feet below."

The defense requested and obtained a hearing on the mental competency of Burlew to stand trial on the charges. The defense motion was withdrawn after testimony at a competency hearing Dec. 19.

Isaac S. Yoder, the owner of a lock and key business in Nevada, Missouri, is set to go to trial March 20 on four counts.

Yoder, who was photographed inside the Capitol building dressed as George Washington, is charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

His attorney sought a change of venue Dec. 13, claiming excessive publicity about the attack on the Capitol and asking that his case be removed to the federal court in Springfield.

The defense also has filed a motion asking the judge to prevent prosecutors from using any "inflammatory" terms at trial, such as "riot," "mob," "insurrection," "extremists," "breach" and "anti-government." The court has yet to rule on the motion.