Thomas Webster, a 20-year NYPD veteran who retired in 2011 after 20 years of service with the department, was the first Capitol riot defendant to be tried on an assault charge and the first to present a jury with a self-defense argument
Thomas Webster, a 20-year NYPD veteran, was the first Capitol riot defendant to be tried on an assault charge and the first to present a jury with a self-defense argument. Webster, who was wearing a face mask in court, showed no obvious reaction to the verdict finding him guilty of all six counts against him.
Rathbun testified that he didn’t punch or pick a fight with Webster as a violent mob attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, disrupting Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory over then-President Donald Trump.
Webster drove alone to Washington, D.C., from his home near Goshen, New York, on the eve of the Jan.6 “Stop the Steal” rally. He was wearing a bulletproof vest and carrying a U.S. Marine Corps flag on a metal pole when he approached the Capitol, after listening to Trump address thousands of supporters.
Rathbun’s body camera captured Webster shouting profanities and insults before they made any physical contact. Webster said he was attending his first political protest as a civilian and expressing his free speech rights when he yelled at officers behind a row of bike racks.
The body camera video shows that Webster slammed one of the bike racks at Rathbun before the officer reached out with an open left hand and struck the right side of Webster’s face. Webster said it felt like he had been hit by a freight train.
More than 780 people have been charged with riot-related federal crimes. The Justice Department says over 245 of them have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. More than 100 officers were injured.