During a meeting on Dec. 30, 2020, Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio announced the creation of the Ministry of Self-Defense: a team of several dozen members he said was meant to bring a sense of order and professionalism that the group was lacking at most of its events. The team was tasked with a number of orders to assure they were on the defensive rather than the offensive during its march to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“We’re never going to be the ones to cross the police barrier or cross something in order to get to somebody,” Tarrio said during the meeting. Among the orders to avoid chaos, members were told to take steps to ensure security, separate themselves from other protesters, stay away from alcohol and women, and obey police lines. If someone broke the orders, they would face removal from the group, Tarrio told them.
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Nevertheless, the orders were not followed during the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol, according to video that showed Proud Boys members taking the lead in removing barriers, breaching police lines, and moving in coordination as they advanced on the Capitol. Some members were also responsible for instigating other protesters, often referred to as “riling up the normies” in private messages, according to the New York Times.
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The instructions were given during a video conference held by the group’s leaders that has been cited in court filings but have not been widely circulated. The Proud Boys leaders’ lawyers have pointed to the video as evidence that the group did not plan their attack for weeks in advance as prosecutors have claimed in their filings.
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The five Proud Boys leaders are expected to face trial in early 2023 after being charged by the Justice Department with “seditious conspiracy” related to their alleged roles in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. The group has also taken on a significant part in the Select Committee’s hearings, being featured prominently in video shown during the first prime-time hearing.
The criminal trial was delayed from its first August date until after the Jan. 6 hearings have concluded so attorneys can fully review the evidence unearthed by House investigators because the DOJ is concerned new revelations about the group’s members will be revealed in future hearings that could be used as key evidence in its case
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