Incident Details
- Date of Incident
- January 6, 2021
- Location
- Washington, District of Columbia
- Targets
- Ralf Oberti (ZDF)
Journalists survey damaged equipment outside the Capitol on Jan. 7, 2021, a day after supporters of President Donald Trump occupied the capitol building and targeted the media for harassment, assaults and equipment damage.
Illinois man who destroyed media equipment during J6 riot sentenced
An Illinois man was sentenced on Oct. 4, 2023, on charges related to his actions at the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, according to court documents reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.
Shane Jason Woods pleaded guilty to two counts of assault and was sentenced to four years in prison and three years of supervised release. Under the terms of a plea agreement, he must pay $2,000 in restitution for damage to the Capitol and a $110 fine.
Woods was the first person to be arrested and charged with assaulting a member of the news media during the Capitol riots, admitting in September 2022 that he assaulted a Reuters journalist and a police officer on Jan. 6. He was also charged with destroying equipment belonging to media outlets, including The Associated Press and German public-service broadcaster ZDF.
According to the plea agreement, the six additional charges against Woods, including for civil disorder, assault, and violence and disorderly conduct on restricted grounds, would be dismissed as part of the sentencing.
New York men sentenced in destruction of media equipment during the J6 riot
Two New York residents were sentenced on charges related to their destruction of media equipment during the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Both men admitted their participation in destroying equipment belonging to outlets including the German public-service broadcaster ZDF and The Associated Press.
Gabriel Brown of Bayville, New York, was sentenced on July 12 to 20 days incarceration and one year of supervised release, with a fine of $35 and $500 in restitution for damage to the Capitol, according to court documents reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.
Brown was convicted on two federal charges: engaging in an act of physical violence on the Capitol grounds and disrupting the conduct of government business. He had agreed to a plea deal on Feb. 8, 2023, in which two other charges — disorderly and disruptive conduct and committing an act of physical violence — were dismissed.
In a separate proceeding, Zvonimir Jurlina of Farmingdale, New York, was sentenced on July 20 to 14 days in prison and 24 months of probation, with a fine of $10 and $500 in restitution for damage to the Capitol.
Under the terms of the plea deal agreed to on April 19, Jurlina pleaded guilty to engaging in an act of physical violence on the Capitol grounds. A second charge for destruction of property was dismissed.
Virginia man ordered to pay more than $33,000 in restitution for destruction of German broadcaster’s equipment during J6 riots
On May 1, 2023, Virginia resident Joshua Dillon Haynes was ordered to pay approximately $33,000 in restitution for the destruction of equipment belonging to German public-service broadcaster ZDF during the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Haynes was sentenced to 32 months in prison and 36 months of supervised release on Feb. 2, after pleading guilty to two felony charges — obstruction and destruction of property.
According to court records reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, an attorney representing Haynes argued during an April 26 hearing that Haynes should not be required to pay further restitution because he is destitute. The court rejected the argument and ordered Haynes to pay 29,989.36 euros (about $33, 000) to ZDF’s insurer, with monthly payments of $20 following his release.
As part of the sentencing, ZDF provided an itemized list of the equipment damaged during the riot; the Tracker has updated this article with those additional details.
Man sentenced to 3 years of probation for destroying news equipment during J6 riots; two others plead guilty to similar charges
Massachusetts resident Chase Kevin Allen was sentenced to three years of probation on April 20, 2023, after pleading guilty to felony charges stemming from his involvement in the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Allen was arrested in June 2021 on two federal charges, including destroying cameras, tripods and remote broadcasting news equipment, some of which belonged to German public-service broadcaster ZDF and The Associated Press. As part of his sentencing, he was ordered to pay $500 in restitution to the government.
Two New York residents also pleaded guilty to felony charges for the destruction of the media equipment, according to court documents reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.
Gabriel Brown was arrested in June 2021 and indicted on four federal charges, including damaging cameras, tripods and remote broadcasting news equipment. Brown agreed to a plea deal on Feb. 8, 2023, for two of the charges — disorderly and disruptive conduct and committing an act of physical violence.
In his statement of offense, Brown acknowledged that when members of the crowd began destroying the equipment, he “participated in the assault on the media staging area by kicking and/or stomping on equipment that belonged to media outlets, and incited violent acts of destruction of media equipment.”
Zvonimir Jurlina was arrested in June 2021 and charged with two federal charges for destruction of property and committing an act of violence on Capitol grounds. Jurlina pleaded guilty on April 19 to a felony charge for his involvement in destroying the news equipment.
In a statement of offense, Jurlina acknowledged he participated in the destruction of the media staging area and assisted in setting the pile of destroyed and abandoned equipment on fire.
Brown has a sentencing hearing scheduled for May 12; Jurlina is set to be sentenced on July 20.
Virginia man sentenced to 32 months behind bars after destroying news equipment
Virginia resident Joshua Dillon Haynes was sentenced to 32 months behind bars and 36 months of supervised release on Feb. 2, 2023, after pleading guilty to felony charges stemming from his involvement in the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Haynes was arrested in July 2021 on eight federal charges including destroying cameras, tripods and remote broadcasting news equipment, some of which belonged to German public-service broadcaster ZDF and The Associated Press. In September 2022, Haynes agreed to plead guilty to two of the charges — obstruction and destruction of property — in exchange for the remaining charges being dropped.
At Haynes’ sentencing, freelance photojournalist Ralf Oberti gave a victim’s statement. Oberti told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was doing live shots with ZDF’s Bureau Chief at a media staging area on the Senate side of the Capitol building. In an interview with Poynter, Oberti said a team of AP journalists was standing nearby as rioters shouted that they were liars and yelled at them to leave. As rioters destroyed media equipment and intimidated journalists into leaving, Oberti lost most of ZDF’s equipment, but said he managed to save his camera.
“I saw them starting to destroy all the gear from the Associated Press, and what crossed my mind next was, ‘They’re going to start beating us,’” Oberti told Poynter. “And when they start doing that, everybody comes on top and you cannot escape. So yeah, in that moment I was very nervous.”
The Tracker documented thousands of dollars of damaged or lost media equipment for both ZDF and the AP.
Virginia man pleads guilty to felony charges connected to destruction of news equipment
According to the Department of Justice, Virginia resident Joshua Dillon Haynes pleaded guilty on Oct. 28, 2022, to felony charges that included destroying media equipment during the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Haynes was arrested on July 1, 2021, in Covington, Virginia, and originally indicted on eight federal charges including destroying cameras, tripods and remote broadcasting news equipment, some of which belonged to German public-service broadcaster ZDF and The Associated Press. Earlier this year, Haynes pleaded not guilty but later withdrew his request for a jury trial. In September, Haynes agreed to a plea deal for two of the federal charges — obstruction and destruction of property — which carry a combined maximum of 25 years in prison and financial penalties. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 31, 2023.
Individual charged for the destruction of ZDF, other media equipment
The Justice Department announced on June 24, 2021, that it had charged an individual in connection with the destruction of equipment belonging to German public-service broadcaster ZDF, as well as the assaults of an unidentified cameraman and a Capitol Police officer, during riots at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6.
The individual, identified as Shane Woods in an affidavit listing the charges and evidence against him, was allegedly among those “yelling and spitting at members of the news media along a pushed-over fence next to the media staging area in the northeast area of the U.S. Capitol.”
“Moments later, the individual who appears to be WOODS climbed over the toppled fence and participated in the assault on the media equipment,” the affidavit says. According to the filing, the destroyed equipment belonged to various media outlets and included cameras, tripods, lights, shades and remote broadcasting equipment.
Woods is charged with numerous federal offenses, including assault of a law enforcement officer, assault in special maritime and territorial jurisdiction, obstructing law enforcement, disorderly conduct and engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds. If convicted on all charges, Woods faces imprisonment for up to 17 years, fines or both.
According to a Justice Department press release, Woods is the first individual to be arrested for an assault on members of the news media during the Capitol riots.
On July 1, Virginia resident Joshua Dillon Haynes was also arrested and charged with damaging the journalists’ equipment, The Washington Post reported. Haynes allegedly bragged about the property destruction in a text to a friend.
“We attacked the CNN reporters and the fake news and destroyed tens of thousands of dollars of their video and television equipment here’s a picture behind me of the pile we made out of it,” he allegedly wrote.
According to The Post, three other men — Massachusetts resident Chase Kevin Allen and Long Island residents Gabriel Brown and Zvonimir Jurlina — were also recently arrested for their roles in the equipment destruction.
All four men were charged with engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, The Post reported.
“We welcome the Justice Department’s steps to hold people accountable for assaulting journalists and damaging their equipment as they documented one of the worst attacks on our democracy in recent times. These charges send a very clear message that the Justice Department will protect journalists who are doing their jobs to keep us informed,” Bruce Brown, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, told The Post. RCFP is a Tracker partner.
Broadcast equipment belonging to German public-service broadcaster ZDF and worth approximately 30,000 euros was reportedly destroyed as rioters swarmed a group of broadcast journalists covering the unrest in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021.
At a rally in front of the White House earlier that day, President Donald Trump called on his supporters to protest at the Capitol as Congress confirmed President-elect Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory. Following Trump’s speech, which included unfounded claims of election fraud and calls to “fight” the outcome, hundreds then marched to the Capitol, swarmed the building and broke inside, Reuters reported.
ZDF reporter Elmar Thevessen and his team were reporting alongside journalists from The Associated Press when a crowd of rioters stormed them and broke through the barricades surrounding them, according to a tweet posted by Thevessen.
In videos of the incident, the rioters can be heard yelling “fuck the mainstream media” as well as “CNN sucks” and “Fuck CNN!” The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker has not found any information to suggest that a CNN news crew or any CNN equipment was targeted in the attack.
Thevessen told ZDF in a broadcast later that day that Capitol Police had begun using tear gas and flash-bang grenades to clear the west side of the Capitol, causing many rioters to move to the east where the ZDF team and other members of the media were located. The rioters surrounded the journalists and started throwing and destroying their equipment, Thevessen said. The news teams decided that they needed to quickly leave the area; Thevessen said his team was able to save their camera but the rest of their equipment was destroyed.
According to Thevessen, none of the journalists were injured in the attack.
In the center-left of the photo Thevessen posted, a man in a red beanie can be seen holding an orange microphone belonging to ZDF.
Thevessen said in subsequent tweets that a colleague from German broadcaster ARD had retrieved the ZDF microphone from rioters later that day. In total, he wrote, approximately 30,000 euros — or around $36,500 — worth of equipment belonging to the outlet had been destroyed, including a spotlight and portable video uplink.
While the ZDF team was able to protect their camera, according to Thevessen two AP cameras were destroyed. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker has documented that incident here.
In an article published the following morning, ZDF Today’s Journal Editor-in-Chief Wulf Schmiese condemned the attack on Thevessen and his team.
“Thank God nothing happened to him or his people. But it was an attack on us — on all of my colleagues who do what we owe to the USA: free reporting,” Schmiese wrote.
According to Schmiese, the rioters also stole phones belonging to the journalists and attempted to “terrorize” the outlet’s control room with threatening calls.
At least one man has been arrested in connection with the equipment destruction. According to an affidavit filed by FBI Special Agent Jamie Stranahan, the bureau has identified Pete Harding of Cheektowaga, New York, as one of the participants.
The affidavit identified Harding as the man in a maroon hoodie, seen in several videos of the incident, who attempted to light the equipment on fire once it had been destroyed and piled up. The man believed to be Harding can be seen lighting a plastic bag on fire using a lighter in a video posted by Deadspin reporter Chuck Modi.
Harding also confirmed to The Buffalo News that he helped pile up the equipment and attempted to burn it.
“That was a symbolic gesture. Nothing burned. It was metal,” Harding told the paper. “It was far from any structure. It was nowhere near the Capitol building. It was nowhere near a tree. It wasn't even on grass that could be lit on fire. There was a plastic bag. I had a Bic lighter and that was it. It was symbolism."
The News reported that Harding was arrested on Jan. 13 on a U.S. Marshals Service warrant.
The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogues press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].
