Kentucky Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Law Enforcement During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach (original) (raw)

Press Release

Wednesday, September 6, 2023

For Immediate Release

U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia

Defendant Assaulted Police at Lower West Terrace

WASHINGTON – A Kentucky man pleaded guilty today to assaulting law enforcement during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

Clayton Ray Mullins, 54, of Magnolia, Kentucky, pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to a felony offense of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers before U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras. Judge Contreras scheduled Mullins to be sentenced on Jan. 17, 2024.

According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Mullins attended the “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C., and afterward joined a crowd walking from the Ellipse to the U.S. Capitol building. Mullins arrived on the West Lawn, between the Capitol and the Capitol Reflecting Pool, and then walked up to the West Plaza, joining hundreds of other rioters. Here, Mullins and his fellow rioters encountered a line of police officers behind a barricade fence. From 2:07 p.m. through approximately 2:28 p.m., Mullins was actively involved with others in pushing against the barricade and the officers in order to advance closer to the Capitol Building. At approximately 2:28 p.m., the rioters prevailed and took over the West Plaza, and the police officers fell back.

By approximately 4:16 p.m., Mullins had made his way to the Lower West Terrace Archway and began waving other rioters forward to join the press of people pushing to gain access to the Capitol building through the Archway. Mullins then entered the Lower West Terrace Tunnel and joined other rioters attempting to push their way through the Tunnel and into the Capitol building. At about 4:21 p.m., officers inside the Tunnel had pushed the rioters, including Mullins, out and back to the mouth of the Archway. Police officers then established a line at the Archway.

After exiting the Tunnel, court documents say that Mullins was positioned on the Capitol steps below the Archway. Mullins then leaned over a handrail and made multiple attempts to grab the leg of a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer, who had been knocked to the ground. Eventually, Mullins succeeded, secured his grip on the officer’s leg, and violently pulled on it for at least 16 seconds. Ultimately, the officer was dragged down the steps, where he was further attacked by additional rioters.

After this attack, another MPD officer who had just been assaulted and dragged down the Capitol steps attempted to climb back up the steps to rejoin the other officers in the Archway.

As the officer did this, Mullins and a co-defendant pushed the officer back down the steps and into the crowd.

A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington and Louisville Field Offices, which identified Mullins as BOLO (Be on the Lookout) #131 on its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

In the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,146 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 398 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

Updated September 6, 2023

Press Release Number: 23-517