Capitol rioter's angry YouTube 'battlefield' rants are likely to blow up in his face: legal experts
Accused Capitol rioter Kevin Tuck, a former police officer with ties to the Proud Boys, has been posting incendiary videos on YouTube since his release from jail, calling on "patriots" to "rise up" against the government and telling them he looks forward to seeing them "on the battlefield."
Legal experts say Tuck's videos, posted on his "Patriot Pastor" channel, could come back to haunt him in court by prompting a judge to reject a plea deal or impose a harsher sentence, according to a report from the Orlando Sentinel.
"I fully expect this would be played at sentencing if he's convicted, ... or referenced," said attorney David Haas, who practices in federal court and added that any sign of remorse or regret is "obviously lacking" in Tuck's videos.
Another federal defense attorney, Jonathan Rose, added: "A lot of judges would look at that as the exact opposite of an acceptance of responsibility. That puts him in a very compromising position. There are any number of ways that's going to be problematic. That's not going to be helpful for his lawyer."
Tuck, who resigned as a Windermere police officer the day after his arrest, has also reportedly served as a church pastor. He is being represented by John Pierce, the anti-vaxx right-wing attorney who was hospitalized this week with a possible case of COVID-19.
Tuck was arrested along with his son, also a former police officer in Florida, and charged with six federal counts.
In one video posted to his YouTube account on Aug. 16, Tuck says: "I want to encourage pastors and patriots to rise up. Jan. 6 was a day that patriots just were fed up. Patriots are being arrested left and right, day after day, being arrested for trespassing. You've got to be kidding me. You can steal an election and go after people for trespassing? You guys are hypocrites. ... including the Republicans. Republicans are calling for the arrest of people that went into the Capitol. They're arresting patriots that love this country!"
Tuck then launches into an extended anti-gay rant, accusing the Republican Party of drifting away from conservative values.
"Here we are, we're embracing the homosexual lifestyle as if this is normal," Tuck says. "Don't get me wrong, I don't hate homosexuals. I have a lot of homosexual friends, but when we're pushing it in mainstream, and every channel you turn on is the rainbow life. And Pride Month, we're nowhere near Pride Month, but Skittles wants to continue with the Pride stuff, and everywhere you look is the Pride stuff.
He goes on to accuse conservatives of embracing "drag queens" — referencing transgender Republican Caitlyn Jenner, who is not a drag queen.
"This is disgusting that the Republican Party is calling for the arrest of patriots," Tuck continues. "You need to grow a set of balls. I'm tired of the Republican Party. I might become a Democrat and change that party, because at least they got some balls. ...
"We need to go back to God, back to family again," Tuck says. "The devil wants to destroy the family, the husband the wife and the children, and change the genders around. It is such a mental disorder in this nation. If pastors don't rise up, and the Republican Party doesn't rise up, y'all are going to lose your seats, because people are rising up. So I encourage every conservative, every real conservative, every Christian, every pastor, to rise up and begin to do something about it. I look forward to seeing you on the battlefield. ... We're not sitting on our knees anymore."
Watch Tuck's video below.
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