Jan. 6 defendant ‘did not realize’ Congress meets in Capitol

A New Jersey man with alleged ties to Nazism was convicted for his actions during the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol after claiming he was unaware that Congress meets under that big dome.

Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, a former Army reservist, got eye-rolls from jurors in Washington D.C. when he claimed that he had some familiarity with the building he and scores of Donald Trump loyalists descended up on to stop the certification of the 2020 election, but according to CNN, didn’t know specifics.

“I thought there were several buildings called ‘Capitol building,’” Hale-Cusanelli said Thursday. “I did not realize that Congress met in the Capitol.”

However, Hale-Cusanelli, who was convicted of five counts against him Friday, confessed he had taken college classes in American history and understood the function of the Electoral College. The defendant was reportedly heard telling attackers to “advance” during the violent uprising where some in the crowd called for the killing of the vice president, who was sheltering inside the Capitol.

He was also reportedly accused of using a sexist slur to demean a female law enforcement officer defending elected officials who were under siege.

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Jurors were made aware of text messages in which Hale-Cusanelli made anti-Semitic claims. Dozens of people who’d served with him in the military gave interviews in which they claimed to have heard Hale-Cusanelli express similar sentiments. A former roommate of the 32-year-old Colts Neck, N.J., man recorded him saying Jews were “controlling President Biden” after Jan. 6, 2021. Jurors also saw photos of Hale-Cusanelli sporting a haircut and toothbrush mustache similar to those worn by Adolf Hitler.

Hale-Cusanelli said he understands that kind of rhetoric is “offensive,” but claimed he’s half-Jewish and engages in “self-deprecating humor.”

NPR reports that Hale-Cusanelli watched Donald Trump’s speech before the attack on the Capitol and believed the former president when he said he’d join marchers as they made their way to Capitol Hill. Hale-Cusanelli will be sentenced in September.