Nearly all rioters have been freed from jail in Washington, D.C. and most have had felony riot charges dropped against them, and now they are only facing burglary, destruction of property, and curfew violation charges.
Arrest records obtained by WUSA 9 reveal that hundreds of rioters have been arrested over the last week in riots and looting sprees across the nation’s capital:
According to the records, 50% of 104 protest-related arrests identified by WUSA9 were charged with felony rioting, 33% percent were charged with burglary and about 27% percent with curfew violation. [Emphasis added]
…
On Wednesday, MPD Chief Peter Newsham released more detailed arrest numbers. He said on Monday there were an additional 288 arrests, and on Tuesday, just 19. [Emphasis added]
The Washington Post, though, notes that nearly all those arrested in the riots have been freed from jail pending additional court hearings. Likewise, most of those arrested and charged with felony riot have had the charge dropped and reduced to lower-level crimes like curfew violation.
“Although many of those arrested were charged by police with felony rioting, that charge was dropped by prosecutors in most cases,” the Post reported:
After making their initial appearances in D.C. Superior Court, nearly all defendants were apparently freed pending future court appearances. Renata Cooper, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney’s office in the District, declined to comment on the cases. [Emphasis added]
D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said Monday that 88 arrests were made, 44 involving charges of felony rioting. But when the arrestees appeared in Superior Court on Monday, the U.S. attorney’s office dismissed rioting charges against most of the defendants. A handful still face that count. [Emphasis added]
Similar jailbreak policies are being enforced in New York amid multiple nights of rioting and looting. For example, more than 400 rioters arrested in recent days are set to be freed from jail without ever having to pay bail thanks to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D-NY) bail reform law that eliminated bail for most nonviolent crimes and many violent crimes.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.
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