The first criminal trial of a person accused of taking part in the 6 January 2021, assault on the US Capitol by Donald Trump’s supporters opened on Monday, with a judge screening potential jurors for bias. Reuters reports that the defendant, Guy Reffitt, of Texas, is one of about 750 people charged with taking part in the riot, which attempted to stop Congress from formally certifying Democratic President Joe Biden’s election. A guilty verdict for Reffitt could motivate some of the other defendants who face felony charges to accept plea deals offered by prosecutors.
