Why was 'QAnon Shaman' Jacob Chansley's request for release denied? Capitol rioter to remain in prison till trial
QAnon Shaman aka Jacob Anthony Angeli Chansley will remain jailed until his trial. The failed actor became infamous during the devastating Capitol riots that occurred on January 6. He was one of the rioters who wanted to be released from custody but the court denied his request.
The judge said his "willingness to resort to violence" and his refusal to follow police orders indicated he wouldn't be following the release conditions set by the court. The federal judge made the ruling on Monday, March 8. Chansley is still awaiting trial after being charged for obstruction of Congress and interfering with police during a civil disorder, according to the Daily Mail.
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Why was QAnon Shaman's latest bid for release denied?
Quite simply, Judge Royce Lamberth opined that Chansley doesn't realize the gravity of the charges leveled against him. News reports state that the judge didn't find any of the "many attempts to manipulate the evidence and minimize the seriousness of his actions to be persuasive."
He also added that Chansley and his lawyer Al Watkins were reprimanded for the interview with CBS' '60 Minutes'. The report added the lawyer had told jail authorities that it was an attorney-client interview, and didn't reveal it was actually for TV. "The issue is that when the defense counsel is able to speak with his client, he squanders the opportunity for private conversations, preferring instead to conduct a public interview," Judge Lamberth stated.
"Such media appearances are undoubtedly conducive to defense counsel’s fame, but they are not at all conducive to an argument that the only way defense counsel could privately communicate with his client is if defendant were temporarily released," he added.
"Given defense counsel’s decision to use what could have been a confidential videoconference on a media publicity stunt, that argument is so frivolous as to insult the court’s intelligence," he said. "For these reasons, the court finds the defendant has not met his burden of establishing a 'compelling reason' necessitating his temporary release."
In response, lawyer Watkins said: "There's no subterfuge here, at all. ...I did not under any circumstances try to conduct subterfuge to this court, certainly, and not to the facility where my client is currently housed. It's just not my style."
Earlier, Chansley had reportedly revealed he has lost faith in former POTUS Donald Trump. He revealed his disillusionment after news broke about Trump deciding to pardon rapper Lil' Wayne. As per the court documents that were released on February 23, the lawyers for Chansley, who was jailed for participating in the Capitol riots shirtless, sporting face paint and a furry horned hat, wrote that the once ardent Trump supporter is losing his faith in the former president.
They added that "Chansley would rather 'focus his energies and efforts on strengthening his commitment to his faith and to the principle of Ahimsa, being one which promotes living a life which does no harm to any living being, regardless of its size of complexity."