A father and son have been arrested and face assault charges after authorities said they tried to force their way past police officers protecting the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.
Jonathan Wayne "Duke" Valentour, 26, of Boulder, Colorado, was arrested Monday, Justice Department prosecutors said Tuesday. His father, Joseph Charles Valentour, 66, of Centerville, Ohio, was arrested Friday.
Both face felony offenses of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder, prosecutors said. They both also face five misdemeanor offenses, including entering and remaining in a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, engaging in physical violence in a restricted building, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and acts of physical violence in the Capitol building.
Body camera footage shows the elder Valentour deliberately backing into a police line at the Capitol, prosecutors said. After coming into contact with the officers, an officer tried to push him back, and other rioters grabbed the officer’s baton and dragged the officer into the crowd.
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Amid that fracas, additional body camera footage showed Valentour pushing against the police line, repeatedly touching an officer’s shield and working with other rioters to take the shield, authorities said. Valentour’s efforts eventually succeeded and caused the officer to fall down a flight of stairs.
Subsequently, Valentour hindered another officer's efforts to help the fallen officer, prosecutors said.
The younger Valentour is accused of "charging through other rioters," pushing other rioters into a police line, and trying to grab and interfere with the officers. After being pushed down a flight of stairs, the younger Valentour ran back up behind another rioter wielding a police shield, and again tried to interfere with officers defending the Capitol, prosecutors said.
The latest charges come days before President-elect Donald Trump is set to take office. Trump has repeatedly promised pardons for Jan. 6 rioters, saying he would issue pardons on day one of his presidency, which begins Jan. 20. Trump has also expressed sympathy for the rioters, saying they are "living in hell."
In the years since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,500 people have been charged in nearly all 50 states related to the breach of the Capitol. More than 600 have been charged with felony assault or impeding law enforcement.