Emanuel Jackson, a 20-year-old Washington area man, was caught on video using a metal bat to strike the protective shields wielded by police officers as they tried to fend off rioters storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
Jackson, awaiting trial in federal court on assault charges, is now adopting a novel legal defense: seeking to pin the blame on Donald Trump, citing the former president’s remarks at a “Stop the Steal” rally shortly before the Capitol siege.
Trump told the crowd to “fight like hell,” said “we will not take it anymore” and repeated his false claims that the election was stolen from him through widespread voting fraud. Trump exhorted his followers to go to the Ca…
Keep on reading: ‘He invited us’: Accused Capitol rioters blame Trump in novel legal defense