Judge Acquits January 6 Defendant: ‘Reasonably Believed’ Capitol Police Let Him In Building

On Wednesday, a federal judge acquitted a January 6 defendant on all charges after ruling that the New Mexico man “reasonably believed” he was allowed to enter the Capitol building during the protest against the 2020 election results after being let in by United States Capitol Police officers.

Judge Trevor McFadden “issued the verdict from the bench after hearing testimony without a jury in the case against Matthew Martin,” The Washington Post reported.

Martin was the first January 6 defendant to testify in his defense trial and argued that Capitol Police allowed him to enter the facility. According to the Post, Martin “said he ‘went with the flow’ as he approached the Capitol and testified that he saw a police officer wave him into the building.”

He was in the Capitol building for roughly 10 minutes on that day. – READ MORE