January 6 United States Capitol attack defendant resigns from posts, to get day in court

As former President Donald Trump awaits trial, so too does a Salisbury man and former public official for his alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol.

Carlos Ayala, until this week a member of the Maryland State Board of Elections, was arrested Tuesday, and charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with civil disorder, a felony, and related misdemeanor offenses.

“According to allegations contained in court documents, Ayala was identified as among a group of rioters illegally gathered on restricted Capitol grounds,” said a release from U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. “Ayala is seen on video footage climbing over police barricades and making his way to the Upper West Terrace of the Capitol as rioters overran the police lines.”

An altercation with United States Capitol Police is described in the release, and according to the document, Ayala walked the length of the police line, gestured at the officers, and said, “Join us!”

Reached by the Daily Times, Ayala’s lawyer, James Trusty, said: “No comment at this time.”

Original story on Carlos Ayala: Salisbury man arrested in connection with Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Here's everything to know.

Jan. 6 suspect resigns from Maryland Elections Board

The fallout from the arrest of Ayala, a retired Perdue executive, on Tuesday was first slow, then swift.

“I have accepted the immediate resignation of Carlos Ayala,” said Maryland State Board of Elections Board Chair Michael Summers, in a release on Thursday. “The Board is committed to maintaining the security and integrity of our elections in Maryland in a non-partisan manner. The State Board will remain steadfast in our mission to oversee our elections process and serve as a trusted source of information for all Marylanders during this presidential election year.”

He was unanimously approved by the state Senate’s Executive Nominations Committee after being introduced by state Sen. Mary Beth Carozza, R-Worcester/Wicomico/Somerset last March, receiving the green light to begin a four-year term on the board on July 1, 2023.

In a statement, Nicole Beus Harris, the chairwoman of the Maryland Republican Party, said the state party “believes in the 1st Amendment and in the American principle that one is innocent until proven guilty.”

(The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment, in part, protects “the right of the people peaceably to assemble.”)

The statement of Harris, the wife of Maryland Congressman Andy Harris, R-1, continued.

“That said, Mr. Ayala did choose to resign because he believes that the 2024 elections process and the State Board of Elections is extremely important and should not be muddied with distraction,” she said.

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Salisbury Capitol riot suspect also resigns from Wicomico committee

Similarly, Assistant Director of Administration for Wicomico County Matthew Leitzel confirmed Carlos Ayala resigned on Jan. 10 from the county’s Administrative Charging Committee, a five-member body designed make determinations on whether a police officer should be charged and appear before a trial board after allegations of misconduct.

Ayala had been unanimously selected to a two-year term on the committee on Oct. 19, 2022 by the Wicomico County Police Accountability Board, which is comprised of community members whose professions include a pastor, a farmer, and former law enforcement.

The Chair of both the county’s Police Accountability Board and Administrative Charging Committee, Ron Lewis, who retired as a Maryland State Police officer after 28 years, said: “I’m not authorized to speak on behalf of the county” when reached by phone on Friday.

That Administrative Charging Committee has reviewed 15 cases since its inception, and has eight cases pending, according to Leitzel. The county’s Police Accountability Board is scheduled to meet next week. The county’s administrative charging committee is scheduled to meet Jan. 23.

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Court date set for Jan. 6 Capitol riot suspect Carlos Ayala

A court hearing for Ayala is scheduled for Feb. 8, 2024, at the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, according to court documents accessed online, which also stipulate the conditions for his release in the interim.

“More than 1,265 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 440 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony,” said a press release from the United States Department of Justice, “The investigation remains ongoing.”

The release also said: “All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”

“No one is above the law,” said Harry Dunn, who worked as a U.S. Capitol Police officer who was attacked on Jan. 6, 2021 and is now running for U.S. Congress in Maryland’s third district, in a public post online Thursday.

Dwight A. Weingarten is an investigative reporter, covering the Maryland State House and state issues. He can be reached at dweingarten@gannett.com or on Twitter at @DwightWeingart2.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: After resignations, Jan. 6 defendant Carlos Ayala gets court date