WGHP FOX8
by: Steve Doyle
GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — One will be sentenced on Friday. Another is scheduled to be sentenced in two weeks. A third will face a jury in April. And yet another remains in custody as his case moves along.
These are among the six defendants from the Triad who were charged by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia for entering the U.S. Capitol during the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021.
They are among thousands accused of breaching the doors and windows, of assaulting law enforcement officers, of storming into the Capitol’s chambers and offices and threatening the violent overthrow of the government as lawmakers affirmed the results of the election on Nov. 3, certifying President Joe Biden’s victory.
Five people involved have died during or after the attack that day, and about 140 police officers were injured. A bipartisan House committee continues to investigate the events that led to that violence and the people behind it.
More than 700 people have been charged with crimes, and 150 have pleaded guilty. As of Jan. 1, 71 had been sentenced, Politico reported.
On Friday, Virginia Marie “Jenny” Spencer of Pilot Mountain will be added to that list.
Spencer, 37, was arrested Feb. 8 and charged after the riot where she was with her husband, Christopher Spencer, and their 14-year-old child that day in Washington. Court documents say she went inside House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, the Winston-Salem Journal reported.
Chris Spencer had been arrested in January – the first person from North Carolina to be jailed in connection to the insurrection – and Jenny Spencer was identified in court documents as having taken photos or video inside the Capitol.
She has been charged with obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting; entering and remaining in a restricted building or rounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.
On Sept. 9, Jenny Spencer pleaded guilty to the charge that she paraded, demonstrated or picketed in the Capitol. The agreement drops the four other charges in exchange for her guilty plea.
She will be sentenced at 10 a.m. Friday, and prosecutors are recommending a jail sentence, the Journal reported.
Anthony Joseph Scirica of Winston-Salem also pleaded guilty to one similar charge and is to be sentenced on Jan. 20.
Laura Steele of Thomasville was indicted five times, the last for her role with the Oath Keepers militant group, and will have a jury trial on April 19.
And Charles Donohoe, of Kernersville, was arrested on March 17 and faces five charges, including conspiracy. He’s considered a leader of the Proud Boys, another antigovernment militant group that is said to have played a role in coordinating the attack.
Kernersville, N.C.
CHARGES: Conspiracy; Obstruction of an Official Proceeding and Aiding and Abetting; Destruction of Government Property and Aiding and Abetting; Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds.
STATUS: Arrested March 17 and arraigned April 6 and ordered detained. He remains in custody
Winston-Salem, N.C.
CHARGES: Knowingly Entering or Remaining in any Restricted Building or Grounds Without Lawful Authority, Violent Entry and Disorderly Conduct on Capitol Grounds.
STATUS: Arrested June 16, pleaded guilty to one count, released on personal recognizance.
SENTENCING: 10 a.m., Jan. 20.
Pilot Mountain, N.C.
CHARGES: Obstruction of an Official Proceeding and Aiding and Abetting; Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building; Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building.
STATUS: Arrested Jan. 19. Twice indicted with his wife, Virginia Spencer. Pleaded not guilty. He was conditionally released.
Pilot Mountain, N.C.
CHARGES: Obstruction of an Official Proceeding and Aiding and Abetting; Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building; Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building.
STATUS: Arrested Feb. 8. Indicted with her husband, Christopher Spencer. Reached at an agreement and pleaded guilty to Count 5 on Sept. 9.
SENTENCING: 10 a.m. Friday
Thomasville, N.C.
CHARGES: Conspiracy; Obstruction of an Official Proceeding and Aiding and Abetting; Destruction of Government Property and Aiding and Abetting; Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Tampering with Documents or Proceedings.
STATUS: Arrested Feb. 17, charged in five indictments, including fifth as part of Oath Keepers. Released on personal recognizance.
TRIAL: Scheduled for jury trial at 10 a.m. April 19.
Reidsville, N.C.
CHARGES: Obstruction of an Official Proceeding and Aiding and Abetting; Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Entering and Remaining in Certain Rooms in the Capitol Building; Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building; Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building.
STATUS: Arrested on March 5 and arraigned on March 23, pleaded not guilty on all counts. Released on personal recognizance.
You can find a full update on all 725-plus cases being prosecuted for Jan. 6. You also can see how those cases varied and find more background details on many of them.
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