Proud Boys member who nearly came face-to-face with Schumer on January 6 pleads guilty
By Holmes Lybrand and Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN
Josh Pruitt, a member of the Proud Boys who then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and his team ran from during the US Capitol riot, pleaded guilty Friday to a felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding on January 6, 2021.
According to his plea agreement, Pruitt and another rioter entered the Capitol Visitor’s Center after breaching the building. At that time, Schumer and his security detail, fleeing the Senate chamber, waited at nearby elevators in an attempt to reach a secure location.
“As they waited, a member of Senator Schumer’s security detail saw Pruitt and one other man approaching,” the plea agreement says. The New York Democrat “ran away,” evading the two men. Pruitt eventually left the Capitol Visitor’s Center after learning that someone had been shot in the building.
Security footage from that day shows Schumer and his detail approaching the elevators and then quickly fleeing the area.
Pruitt also confronted police officers at the Capitol and threw a sign inside the building during the riot. Before his plea agreement, Pruitt had faced eight counts, including physical acts of violence and obstructing law enforcement. He could spend an estimated 51 to 63 months behind bars.
Pruitt told CNN in January that he didn’t “feel like (he) did anything wrong” that day but was concerned about potential consequences. “Trying to send me to prison for a few years over this, I think, is a complete joke,” Pruitt said, noting at the time that he had no plans to plead guilty.
Pruitt was detained later that month after failing to comply multiple times with his pretrial release conditions and making a threatening video, according to prosecutors.
Other members of the Proud Boys, including their leader Enrique Tarrio, face a conspiracy charge related to the Capitol riot. Their trial is set for early August.
During Friday’s hearing, Pruitt remained uncharacteristically quiet, giving quick yes or no answers to questions posed by Judge Timothy Kelly. His sentencing is scheduled for August 26.
The-CNN-Wire
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