January 6 defendant charged with punching woman in Asheville bar stays out of jail on bond

ASHEVILLE - A Jan. 6 defendant arrested for punching a woman in an Asheville bar will not have his bond revoked and can remain free during his federal court proceedings, a judge overseeing the Capitol riot case has said.

Judge Carl J. Nichols with the U.S. District Court in D.C. said Alan St. Onge of Brevard can remain "on personal recognizance" with a third-party custodian.

Nichols noted in a Dec. 20 court docket entry that St. Onge's release conditions were amended, but did not give details saying there was a "further order to be issued by the court."

No order had been put in the public docket as of Jan. 10. The Citizen Times reached out to St. Onge, his attorney Renae Alt-Summers of Columbia, South Carolina, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Holly Fugiel Grosshans.

St. Onge, 36, was arrested June 16, 2023, more than two years after supporters of President Donald Trump sought to overturn the election of Democrat Joe Biden. He was charged with felony obstruction of law enforcement during the commission of a civil disorder and three misdemeanors of entering and remaining on restricted grounds, disorderly conduct on restricted grounds and impeding passage through Capitol grounds.

On Oct. 3, he pleaded not guilty and was freed on a non-monetary bond and allowed to remain in Transylvania County. Bond requirements included that he not break any federal or state laws and submit to a DNA sample collection.

Charged with Nov. 13 bar assault

But on Thanksgiving night 2023, St. Onge went to the 27 Club on Patton Avenue downtown where he made advances on a woman who rebuffed him, according to witnesses cited by Asheville police. He then approached two other patrons, a man and woman, and asked the man to bet him "who would (expletive)" his companion first, police said.

The woman told him to stop harassing women at the bar and St. Onge threw an ashtray at her chest, according to a police report. She threw water at him and St. Onge punched her in the throat, police said.

The male attempted to intervene and St. Onge pushed him to the ground and kicked and stomped on him until another person announced the police had been called, the report said. St. Onge left the bar but was stopped by police for traffic violations and charged with driving while impaired and later with assault and assault on a female. A Buncombe County magistrate allowed him to go free on an unsecured bond.

After the Asheville arrest federal prosecutors sought to have St. Onge's bond revoked. In their last filing on the issue, on Dec. 12, the assistant U.S. attorneys said he violated his conditions of release at least four distinct times when he "1) drank to excess, 2) punched a woman in the throat, 3) stomped on aman’s chest and 4) drove drunk away from the scene."

"So long as he remains at liberty, he poses a danger to the community because he has shown that he feels unbound by the restrictions that this court places upon him, readily commits acts of violence against those who anger him and uses his size to his natural advantage. He has also proven himself to be a flight risk by already fleeing once from the scene of a crime," they said.

The owner of 27 Club, Imran Malik, agreed, telling the Citizen Times that St. Onge's large stature and behavior made him "obviously a danger."

In describing his alleged crimes on Jan. 6, 2021, prosecutors have said St. Onge "turned his back to a metal barricade and, using the considerable mass of his body, pushed it against the police on the other side who were resisting his efforts and trying to hold the police line."

But his attorney, Alt-Summers, said the Asheville-based misdemeanor assault charges "arose from an apparent difference of opinion" and that the only current version of events were from the alleged victims.

"While the assault allegations are troubling, they remain allegations and the existence of charges does not make Mr. St. Onge a danger to others or the community," she said in the Dec. 8 filing.

Other WNC J6 defendants

Also currently facing charges related to the Capitol riot is Nathan Baer of Starnes Cove, near Asheville.

Three men from WNC have been convicted for actions on and near Jan. 6.

• Thomas Gronek of Asheville, was arrested Jan. 5, 2021, in Washington in a bus spray painted "Hippies 4 Trump" and pleaded guilty to violating a D.C. gun law of carrying a rifle outside his home. He was sentenced to time served and a $50 fine.

• Cleveland Grover Meredith of Hayesville, threatened to shoot House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in the head after arriving in Washington Jan. 7, 2021, with an assault rifle and 2,500 rounds of ammunition. He was sentenced to more than two years in prison.

• Lewis Easton Cantwell of Waynesville, pleaded guilty to obstructing officers during the Jan. 6 attack and was sentenced to five months in prison.

The most prominent people with links to WNC and Jan. 6 are Donald Trump's former chief of staff Mark Meadows, who was charged with conspiring to flip the Georgia presidential election results. Ex-Trump attorney and former Asheville and Biltmore Forest resident Sidney Powell pleaded guilty to her role in that effort. She is also understood to be an unnamed co-conspirator in a federal election interference case.

Former WNC Congressman Madison Cawthorn delivered a fiery speech to Trump supporters before the attack. A lawsuit said he should be denied a spot on the ballot because he was an insurrectionist but the case was dropped when he lost the Republican primary.

More: Ex-Trump staffer, Western NC congressman Mark Meadows moves to dismiss publisher's suit

Madison Cawthorn's former lawyer who defended him against insurrection charges drops suit

Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: No jail for J6 defendant charged with punching woman in Asheville bar