January 6 Defendant Being Illegally Detained – Locked up More Than 80 Days With No Indictment
By Leslie McAdoo Gordon | Mar 07, 2022 7:30 AM ET
You don’t see this very often in federal court, but one of the January 6 (J6) Defendants, Lucas Denney, is being held illegally. He was arrested in Texas on December 13, 2021, and brought before a federal magistrate, who ordered him detained without bond on a criminal Complaint. It then took six weeks to transfer him to DC, where he is currently being held. He has not appeared before a federal judge in DC since his arrival, although that will change Monday afternoon as a result of his lawyer seeking his release.
Denney’s case involves two distinct, major screwups. The first is that he was not afforded a Preliminary Hearing, to which he is entitled under the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and the Constitution. The second is that he has not been indicted by a grand jury within 30 days of his arrest, as required by the federal Speedy Trial Act. Consequently, Denney’s detention has been unlawful since at least late January 2022.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) alleges that Denney participated in the riot on January 6, 2021, in Washington D.C. at the United States Capitol. It charged Denney with five felonies: assaults, civil disorder, and obstructions of an official proceeding, and with seven trespassing misdemeanors. An arrest warrant was issued for him in December 2021 based on a criminal Complaint sworn out by a law enforcement officer, not on an indictment returned by a grand jury.
Denney was arrested on December 13, 2021, in Texas, where he lives, and taken before a federal magistrate there. According to the docket of his case, he appeared before the federal magistrate on December 14, 2021, for what the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure call an “Initial Appearance.” That is just what it sounds like: it’s the first time a judicial officer sees a person after they are arrested. Its purpose is to make sure the person has been legally arrested. The Constitution requires that the Initial Appearance be held promptly, generally within 48 hours.
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https://redstate.com/leslie-mcadoo-gordon/2022/03/07/january-6-defendant-being-illegally-detained-locked-up-more-than-80-days-with-no-indictment-n532662
