Colorado man pleads guilty for his involvement in Jan. 6 Capitol breach

WASHINGTON, USA (KRDO)-- A Colorado man pleaded guilty on Oct. 24, to assaulting law enforcement during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. 

Jonathan David Grace, 49, of Colorado Springs, pleaded guilty in Washington D.C. to one count of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers. 

Grace is expected to be sentenced on Jan. 30, 2024.

According to court documents obtained by the Department of Justice (DOJ), on Jan. 6, 2021, Grace marched to the U.S. Capitol grounds and joined a group of rioters attempting to push their way past law enforcement officers who had formed in a police line in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel entrance to the Capitol.

At approximately 3:12 p.m., Grace entered the Tunnel and joined the collective efforts to push into the police line. He then made his way into the mob of rioters inside the Tunnel, put his head down, and began using his body weight to forcefully push in unison with the rioters against police officers. 

Court documents say that as Grace and the rioters "thrust their collective body weight into the officers," one officer could be heard screaming in pain as he was smashed between a shield and a metal door frame.

Grace remained near the Tunnel on the Lower West Terrace and reentered at about 3:15 p.m.

This, after officers temporarily gained control of the Tunnel forcing the rioters to exit. 

Grace then made his way to the front of the mob of rioters and joined others in pushing against law enforcement. It was reported he started pushing against police with other rioters while the mob inside the Tunnel aggressively yelled commands like, “PUSH!” and “LET’S GO!” and “WHOSE STREETS? OUR STREETS!”

Around 3:18 p.m., Grace was expelled from the Tunnel. The DOJ stated he remained near the mouth of the Tunnel as rioters continued to engage in violent acts against police officers and watched close by as rioters dragged a Metropolitan Police Department officer out of the Tunnel and attacked him.

Grace again joined other rioters who began pushing against the police line, attempting to force their way into the Capitol building.

As police attempted to fully clear the Tunnel of rioters, Grace remained at the front of the mob, fighting with officers and using his body to maintain ground. He held onto the tunnel archway, turned his back to the officers, and resisted the officers’ pushing. 

The DOJ stated he finally stopped after being sprayed by police with a chemical irritant.