Patriot Front members continue to resolve cases with pleas to infraction

Aug. 31—At least six more Patriot Front members recently pleaded guilty to a lesser charge after they and their 25 co-conspirators were arrested last year on their way to a Pride event in downtown Coeur d'Alene.

Connor Moran, of Watauga, Texas; Conor Ryan, of Thornton, Colorado; Nathaniel Whitfield, of Elk Ridge, Utah; Mitchell Wagner, of Florissant, Missouri; James M. Johnson, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota; and Colton Brown, of Ravensdale, Washington, pleaded guilty to failure to obtain a parade permit, which is an infraction, according to court records.

Moran, Ryan, Whitfield, Wagner and Johnson were fined $456.50.

Brown's sentencing documents were not available on the Idaho Court Portal.

He agreed, however, to pay $456.50 from the cash bond previously posted in his case, according to his plea documents. The portal indicated he paid the $456.50 fee.

Four other members of the white nationalist group previously pleaded this summer to the infraction and were fined $456.50.

The 31 men were originally charged with conspiring to riot by disturbing the peace at Pride in the Park last year in downtown Coeur d'Alene. The misdemeanor charge carries a maximum punishment of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

The men piled into a U-Haul truck intended for the LGBTQ+-friendly event when law enforcement officers stopped them on Northwest Boulevard just north of Coeur d'Alene City Park, where the event took place.

Kootenai County Magistrate Judge Destry Randles dismissed Richard Jessop's case.

Five members were convicted of the conspiracy charge by a jury in July and sentenced to three days in jail, one year of probation and $1,000 in fines.

A jury convicted two other members of conspiracy shortly after the first trial. They were sentenced to two years of probation and $1,000 in fines.

Another member was sentenced in November to two years of probation and a $500 fine after pleading guilty to disturbing the peace.