In a formal written statement on Friday, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an independent presidential candidate, initially claimed that the participants in the January 6 Capitol riot carried no weapons. However, he retracted this claim three hours later after learning that he was incorrect. Despite the repeated debunking of this claim, Kennedy used it in a statement intended to clarify his views on the events of January 6, following controversial comments made by his campaign earlier in the week.
The false claim that the January 6 rioters did not carry any weapons has been perpetuated by former President Donald Trump and others, but it is far from the truth. Video footage from that day and court cases have shown that many rioters were armed with various weapons, including guns, stun guns, knives, batons, baseball bats, flagpoles, and chemical sprays. According to the Justice Department, 122 of the individuals charged in connection to the riot were charged with entering a restricted area with a dangerous or deadly weapon.
Kennedy’s initial statement on Friday included other claims about January 6 that ranged from debatable to inaccurate, aligning with views promoted by Trump and other right-wing figures. He later retracted the “carried no weapons” claim, stating that he had never minimized or dismissed the seriousness of the riot. Kennedy also expressed his intention, if elected president, to appoint a special counsel to investigate whether prosecutorial discretion was abused for political ends in the case of the Capitol riot.
It was evident from video footage and court cases since early 2021 that many rioters carried weapons on Capitol grounds during the January 6 riot. Convictions have been obtained against individuals who had weapons such as a tomahawk ax, a hockey stick, and loaded handguns. Some individuals, like Mark Mazza, Guy Reffitt, Christopher Alberts, and Jerod Thomas Bargar, were sentenced to prison for carrying guns on Capitol grounds during the riot.
Additionally, Mark Ibrahim, an off-duty special agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration at the time of the riot, has been charged with carrying a firearm on Capitol grounds on January 6. John Banuelos, also charged for firing a pistol in the air after entering Capitol grounds illegally, demonstrates that the presence of weapons during the riot was a significant factor. While it is possible that not all rioters were armed, enough evidence exists to show that weapons were present and used during the events of January 6.
The retraction of the false claim by Kennedy highlights the importance of accurate information in discussions surrounding the January 6 Capitol riot. Despite attempts to clarify his views on the events of that day, Kennedy’s initial statement perpetuated misinformation that has been debunked and proven false through video footage and court cases. The continued investigation and prosecution of individuals who carried weapons during the riot underscores the gravity of the events that transpired on that day.
