All the Reasons Dominic Pezzola is the Worst January 6th Insurrectionist

     He is the most-charged Capitol insurrectionist that few people have heard of. If you ask Americans to identify the face of the Capitol insurrection, a few that might come to mind would be Aaron Mostofsky, the man who wore fur pelts and carried a walking stick; Jacob Chansley, the "QAnon Shaman;" Doug Jensen, the man in the QAnon t-shirt who chased Officer Eugene Goodman; or Kevin Seefried, the man who carried a Confederate flag. In the notoriety tier just beneath them, those Capitol rioters who are known to people who closely follow politics, Dominic Pezzola finds his home. He is worse than some of the more famous people, those who deserved felony convictions for obstructing Congress that day but were not involved in plotting to overthrow the government. Pezzola was involved in this despicable act, however, and the course of his case reflects that. These are all the reasons Dominic Pezzola of Rochester, New York, is the worst January 6th insurrectionist:

1. He has been charged with seditious conspiracy. Dominic Pezzola-- along with Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and fellow Proud Boys Zachary Rehl, Ethan Nordean, and Joe Biggs-- was charged with seditious conspiracy for attempting to overthrow the government on January 6th, 2021, and the weeks before and afterward.
2. He was involved with more than one criminal conspiracy. Aside from charges of sedition, he also faces charges of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and obstruction of Congress for recruiting fellow New Yorkers Matthew Greene and William Pepe to travel to the District of Columbia; Greene has pleaded guilty.
3. He was the tip of the spear on January 6th. The two conspiracies came together on January 6th when Pezzola teamed up with Greene and fellow Proud Boy Charles Donohoe (who pleaded guilty to conspiracy and cooperated with the government to avoid a seditious conspiracy charge) to steal a riot shield from a Capitol police officer he assaulted. He used that shield to break a the window of the Capitol on January 6th, allowing hundreds of insurrectionists to enter.
4. His arrogance was on full display that day. Pezzola wandered the halls of Congress and was featured prominently in images from that day, including standing just behind fellow rioters like QAnon Shaman Jacob Chansley; Doug Jensen, the Iowa man who chased Officer Eugene Goodman; Kevin Seefried, the man who carried a Confederate flag; Aaron Mostofsky, the man who wore furs; and others. He even streamed himself smiling and smoking a cigarette.
5. Police discovered weapons- and bomb-making manuals on his computer. A search of his home, like the home searches of many Capitol insurrectionists, revealed a cache of weapons. However, unlike most Capitol rioters, or any other, as a matter of fact, his computer was found to have instructions for making even more weapons as well as explosives, instructions he had downloaded and was apparently willing to follow.
6. He has a history of political-- and domestic-- violence. Pezzola attended the "Million MAGA March" in late 2020 to protest the 2020 election results in Washington, D.C., part of a long series of demonstrations that experts have pointed out seemed almost like "trial runs" for the January 6th insurrection. Pezzola also has a history of domestic violence: in 2005, he had a shotgun removed from his home after a domestic disturbance incident that occurred while he had a restraining order pending against him.
7. He has refused to accept any responsibility for his actions. Soon after the riot, Pezzola trimmed his hair and beard in an attempt to get away from prosecution. It failed miserably, and he was arrested just weeks after the insurrection and has remained jailed ever since. He and his wife, themselves and through attorneys, have claimed that he is a political prisoner who "only" broke a window and that he should be free while grifting tens of thousands of dollars for his legal defense and complaining that people no longer want to be associated with them.
8. He has even gained notoriety on Capitol Hill. He was mentioned dozens of times during the impeachment of Donald Trump, more than any other rioter that day, because lawmakers recognized even then the central role he played in the worst attack on American democracy since the Civil War and the worst attack on the U.S. Capitol since the War of 1812.
9. He has long railed against government while still taking advantage of it. Dominic Pezzola may have tried to overthrow the government, but he didn't seem too interested in changing it before the insurrection. In fact, Pezzola hadn't voted since 2001. Still, while decrying socialism, he was more than happy to accept a $12,502 PPP loan for his small business, D. Pezzola Flooring, in April 2020. 

     Only three men from Rochester were arrested for the crimes they committed on January 6th. Two other men, Cody Mattice and James Mault, were recently sentenced to 44 months in prison for pepper spraying police on January 6th. Pezzola is the last remaining Rochester defendant whose case is pending, and he, along with the other Proud Boys, is set to go on trial in December. If convicted on all counts, he could spend the rest of his life in prison. For the reasons I have described, that punishment would be deserved.