J6 CONVICTIONS Of PROUD BOYS’ FORMER LEADERSHIP:
⁃ Enrique Tarrio: 22 years
⁃ Ethan Nordean: 18 years
⁃ Zachary Rehl: 15 years
⁃ Joe Biggs: 17 years
⁃ Dominic Pezzola: 10 years
Within the last few days media and pundits on both sides of the aisle are weighing in regarding the unprecedented Proud Boy J6 sentencing. Neither side are Proud Boys. We’re here to tell you what actually happened.
To understand the Proud Boys at January 6th, you have to understand the DC rallies that happened in late 2020. While strategically they were a success in regards to showing a strong presence and deterring Antifa violence, tactically there was room for improvement.
Proud Boys were spread thin across multiple city blocks with no centralized plan regarding safety or accountability of personnel. We never had that many chapters in one place before and needed more organization.
The Proud Boys Agreed Not To Cross Police Lines
From March for Life to Rolling Thunder, every large group legally marching in Washington DC faces these challenges and our organization was no different. Enrique Tarrio, our chairman at the time, formed a planning commission known as “Ministry Of Self Defense” (MOSD) for this sole purpose. It was this planning structure that the federal government used in an attempt to show a conspiracy.
It was also during this planning process where our former chairman explicitly instructed all members to not cross police lines. Though the idea of how the government threw all legitimacy out the window for J6 convictions was inconceivable at the time, Proud Boys as a fraternity are not for breaking the law.
A recording of an MOSD planning meeting containing this directive was made public during the trial. The DOJ attempted to conceal it but despite their best efforts the recording was released by the Gateway Pundit. You may view the recording here.
On the day of January 6th there was no plan to storm the Capitol. Our former chairman wasn’t even in the city. Proud Boys were there to hear the President of the United States speak, to show solidarity with those who believed as we do that the election was stolen and to act as a deterrent against Antifa. Our January 6th involvement was planned to end at a barbecue across the Virginia state line, not in the house chamber.
Any citizen who entered the Capitol did so on their own accord and not as a foot soldier in a seditious conspiracy or at the behest of any organization, including our own. Just ask 80-year old Gary Wikersham who received his J6 conviction just for being there. This trial was politically motivated and brought forth to set a precedent for future convictions and to make an example of our members by egregiously over charging and over sentencing them.
Now, any group that stands against any administration in power and schedules a protest then plans in advance for their own safety, logistics and member conduct is in danger of a seditious conspiracy charge. The J6 convictions will continue, but now the precedence says they can be for anything and even without reason.
Enrique Tarrio and Federal Informants
Enrique Tarrio was a federal informant. After a 2012 indictment he collaborated with the FBI to inform on over a dozen people regarding fraud and the sale of anabolic steroids and prescription narcotics. He should have never been a Proud Boy. You can be a felon and join, depending on the nature of your conviction but you cannot be a snitch.
Choosing to do crime then turning on those you did crime with in order to save yourself or reduce your sentence is an extreme character flaw. Criminals and cops alike both recognize this. So do we. Additionally, anyone who trusts the word of the FBI or the federal government is questionable. Even the hard-left leaning Atlantic admits to this. Being questionable is not a character trait we want in our organization. Regardless, we still maintain the belief that his sentence was monumentally egregious, specifically for someone who was not even present in DC on January 6th.
In the aftermath of January 6th, we dissolved all national leadership. There is no chairman. Every chapter is autonomous. Many have speculated that this has hurt our organization but the opposite is true. Recruiting numbers remain strong and chapter autonomy makes each chapter accountable for their own actions, not the organization as a whole.
This protects us from frivolous lawsuits that attempt to “sue the Proud Boys” and from overzealous federal prosecutors attempting RICO charges. Lessons learned from J6 convictions, and the J6 event as a whole have been embraced and implemented by chapters worldwide.
Opinions Used As Evidence
During the trial the prosecution presented as evidence telegram chat messages from Proud Boys they believed proved seditious conspiracy. The Proud Boys are a men’s fraternity and we act like one in private messages. Often communication between Proud Boys is boisterous and boastful. It’s exactly what you would expect from men in an all-male space. Just because a member is over emphasizing in the moment and trash-talking the government doesn’t mean he’s attempting to overthrow it. Lesson learned- Never post anything you wouldn’t want read back to you in court.
Dominic Pezzola kept his head held high throughout the entire process. After his sentencing and before he was escorted out of the courtroom under guard, he raised his fist and shouted “Trump won”.
Trump did win. We know it and the architects of the 2020 steal know that we know it. They remain completely unchecked and drunk with power. They are the true seditious conspirators. They have perverted our justice system. They have perverted our election system. There is nothing stopping them from doing it again.
We support the United States Constitution always. We support the government only when they deserve it.
