WASHINGTON — Five more people have been charged with felony rioting, and one with assaulting police officers, in connection with protests that damaged buildings and vehicles in D.C. on Inauguration Day.
A grand jury indicted the additional four men and one woman on Tuesday. The indictment also included new details about the violence that broke out just before President Donald Trump was sworn into office on Jan. 20.
Dane Powell, 31, of Largo, Florida, was also charged with three counts of assaulting police officers plus two counts of destruction of property for damage to a Starbucks and a McDonald’s.
Powell, two other men and a woman were also charged with destruction of property for damage to a Starbucks. One of them, Jashua Barnak, 29, of Wilmington, N.C., was also charged with destruction of property for allegedly damaging a limousine.
According to the indictment, the protesters, clothed in dark-colored attire and masks, gathered in the Logan Circle area the morning of Jan. 20.
Armed with props including hammers and firecrackers, they proceeded south, defacing buildings and breaking windows of businesses and a government vehicle, at one point charging at a police line to avoid arrest.
The indictment claims some rioters caused disruption by chanting “F*** it up,” “F*** Capitalism,” and “Whose streets, our streets” as they traveled about 16 city blocks.
Around 11 a.m., the protesters allegedly changed their clothing in efforts to conceal their involvement in the violence.
If convicted, those charged with felony rioting could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $25,000. Each count of assaulting a police officer carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a fine of $10,000.
Also on Tuesday, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia dropped charges against three more people in connection with the violence. Officials said 16 such cases have been dismissed thus far. The office did not say why the cases were dismissed.
Some of the dismissed cases have been journalists arrested while chronicling the actions of a group of self-described anarchists.
Police had originally arrested 230 people and charged them with felony rioting.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
