More Than 200 Inauguration Day Protesters Face Felony Rioting Charges

Thanks to Washington, D.C.’s felony rioting statute, 230 anti-Trump protesters will face up to 10 years in jail for rioting.

The protesters were arrested Friday and appeared in court Saturday, according to a BuzzFeed report. Anti-Trump protests turned violent, with black-clad rioters throwing rocks at police, smashing windows, and setting a car on fire. Police responded with stun grenades, pepper spray, tear gas, and rubber bullets.

A group called #DisruptJ20 organized most of the protests Friday and the violence was not spontaneous.

The Daily Caller reported a week before the inauguration that protesters were planning to destroy property. One protester, Tom Faison, told The Washington Post that the property damage was done with “nuance and intention.”

The Post also reported that a majority of the arrested protesters were not residents of Washington, D.C., Maryland, or Virginia. Tom Massey, 32, of Philadelphia was among those arrested, and he told The Post, “I think there should have been more violence yesterday.”

The arrested protesters have court dates in February and March.