Insurrection Detection

Exposed as part of a long-running series on far-right extremism in Ohio        Two years of probation and $525 of restitution and fees. That's apparently the price for trying to end American democracy. If you were to ask an average American what a milquetoast, overweight redneck not worth his weight in fried shit looked like, you'd probably elicit Steven Billingsley.      On January 6th, this cornfed inbred decided to storm the Capitol. While holding a camera, he shouted, "Yeah baby, storm the Capitol. That's where the thieves are." He insulted and threatened police, saying, "Fuck you people... We can do it the nice way or the hard way. You guys turned on us." When police began using pepper spray, he shouted, "We're gonna have three million bomb y'all," "This is war," and, "You're in trouble," while helping to undo a metal barricade. He screamed, "Push" as other rioters pushed past law enforcement. This

     Evil thrives in darkness. With the Liberty Valley project and the help of my confidential informants from the great state of Ohio, I am working to shine light unto this darkness. The Liberty Valley Church in Ohio has been the subject of numerous exposés in the past few weeks. I've highlighted its ties to a January 6th defendant who blames Jews for all the world's problems, its history of affiliating with the Proud Boys, and the naked partisan politics it has engaged in. Now, I believe this last point could land this "church" in some trouble.       Insurrection Detection has filed a tax complaint against the Liberty Valley Church and Pastor Jeff Tauring using a Form 13909 sent to the FBI. The complaint section of the form reads as follows:       "The Liberty Valley Church is attended by numerous January 6th defendants and their affiliates, and it has worked to pursue a political agenda. After the conviction of Donald Trump on 34 felony charges, it flew the

       Clayton Norris never thought he'd see charges for his violent actions on January 6th. Thanks to the Department of Justice, he was proven wrong, and, thanks to the work of a confidential informant who has allowed me to focus attention on domestic extremists across Northeast Ohio, his bigotry will come to light.       In May 2024, he was arrested on a felony charge of civil disorder and several related misdemeanors for his violent actions that day. Warrants for his Facebook page revealed a wealth of information. Norris knew why Congress was meeting on January 6th, saying he and his co-defendants had no choice but to "riot." Norris planned with other insurrectionists to bring hornet spray, bear spray, and Raid, weapons that would be used to assault hundreds of law enforcement officers on January 6th. Norris arrived at the Capitol before 1 PM, taunting and berating law enforcement with a bullhorn and urging them to "send those motherfuckers out." He also exp

     Couy Griffin is a name that won't ring a bell for most Americans, and the role he physically played in the events of January 6th is relatively minor. However, the role he played in how the story of the insurrection will be told can't be overstated. Griffin was only the second January 6th defendant to go on trial, the first on misdemeanor offenses alone, and the first to go on trial before a judge.      Griffin got the luck of having his case assigned to Judge Trevor McFadden, who is notoriously sympathetic toward January 6th defendants. At trial, McFadden asked an asinine hypothetical question: if he had just entered restricted Capitol grounds to retrieve a hat he had dropped, would he still have been charged? The only response prosecutors could give to the question was to say that he was charged with a lot more than that. Griffin, a member of the Otero County, New Mexico Commission and the founder of "Cowboys for Trump," climbed a barricade to get to a restricte

     A Lakeland, Florida, man who stole an officer's riot shield and kept it as a souvenir is now at a halfway house in Orlando after completing his sentence at a federal prison. Joshua Doolin, a former EMT who ran from news crews after being released on bond, was convicted at trial in March 2023 of felony civil disorder and three related misdemeanors. According to prosecutors, he filmed co-defendants Jonathan and Olivia Pollock, Michael Steven Perkins, and Joseph Hutchinson III repeatedly assaulting police officers before getting ahold of a stolen riot shield and using it to push against police. Doolin was proud of what he had done, saying he "didn't mind" being killed during the insurrection and even contemplating bringing a firearm to the Capitol, something he ultimately decided against.      Doolin was sentenced to 18 months in prison, three years of probation, and a $175 special assessment. In the spring of 2024, Doolin filed to have his prison sentence reduced a

     Federal prosecutors have filed a memorandum seeking 72 months (six years) in prison for a North Carolina resident convicted of assaulting law enforcement during the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Additionally, the government is seeking to have Anthony Mastanduno placed on three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $2,630 in fees and restitution.      Mastanduno, 61, a resident of Rutherford County, pleaded guilty in March to six felonies and three misdemeanors for actions during the attack that spanned several hours and were oftentimes violent. Mastanduno entered the Capitol through the Senate Wing Door just four minutes after it had been breached by the mob that first entered the building. He spent 20 minutes inside the Capitol building, where he helped rush past a line of police officers, one of whom said while being interviewed that he thought his kids would be growing up without him. The North Carolinian then posed for a picture next to a bust on whic