The District of Columbia has filed a civil lawsuit seeking harsh financial penalties against far-right groups Proud Boys and Oath Keepers over their role in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol by supporters of former U.S. President Donald Trump.
The suit, filed Tuesday in federal court, also names dozens of the groups' senior members, many of whom already face criminal charges for taking part in the violent attack on the Capitol building while Congress was meeting to certify the 2020 election results.
Karl Racine, Washington's attorney general, said the lawsuit seeks compensation for damages to the District of Columbia and intends to inflict maximum financial damage on the groups responsible.
鈥淥ut intent is to hold these violent mobsters and violent hate groups accountable and to get every penny of damage we can,鈥 Racine said. 鈥淚f it so happens that we bankrupt them, then that's a good day.鈥
There was no immediate response to emails sent to the groups seeking comment.
The lawsuit cites as its basis a post-Civil War 1871 law known as the Ku Klux Klan Act. A similar tactic was used to secure a $26 million verdict last month against white supremacist groups and individuals responsible for organizing the violent 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in which one person was killed after a man plowed his car into a group of counter-protesters.
The lawsuit came as the Justice Department on Tuesday separately charged three more suspected members of the Proud Boys from Pennsylvania for their alleged roles in January's riot.
The men, Isaiah Giddings and Freedom Vy of Philadelphia and Brian Healion of Upper Darby, are all accused of working with another suspected Proud Boys member, Zachary Rehl - who was arrested in March - to breach the Capitol. Prosecutors say the group traveled together from Pennsylvania and the trio was photographed posing both outside the Capitol and inside the building.
Racine announced the suit Tuesday alongside Eleanor Holmes Norton, D.C.'s non-voting delegate in the House of Representatives. Norton said the suit is designed to secure extra funding to support D.C. police officers injured while defending the Capitol building and to serve as a warning to extremist groups.
鈥淭hey're going to have to spend money to defend themselves,鈥 Norton said. 鈥淓ven if we don't get a penny in restitution, this lawsuit's deterrent effect will say, `Be prepared to spend money to defend yourself because we are coming after you.' 鈥
Racine said evidence presented in the multiple federal criminal cases underway already proves 鈥渆xplicit evidence of conspiracy鈥 to commit violent acts in the nation's capital. He said the lawsuit presents an opportunity to publicly explore and expose the financial support structure of the far-right extremist network.
鈥淚 sure hope they try to defend the case,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e can't wait to propound searing questions about the finances of these individuals and these groups.鈥
The Proud Boys emerged from far-right fringes during the Trump administration to join mainstream GOP circles. The Oath Keepers is a militia group founded in 2009 that recruits current and former military, police and first responders.
A Canadian man who is trapped in Lebanon with his family says they are anxiously waiting for seats on a flight out of the country, as a barrage of Israeli airstrikes continues.
A 21-year-old Yazidi woman has been rescued from Gaza where she had been held captive by Hamas for years after being trafficked by ISIS.
Parts of icy Antarctica are turning green with plant life at an alarming rate as the region is gripped by extreme heat events, according to new research, sparking concerns about the changing landscape on this vast continent.
A 21-year-old man who was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a Toronto police officer this week was out on bail at the time of the alleged offence, court documents obtained by 愛污传媒 Toronto show.
Nearly 30 years after a six-year-old girl disappeared in Western Arkansas, authorities have identified a suspect in her abduction through DNA evidence.
Prosecutors have charged a Michigan man with killing and dismembering a janitor he met on the dating app Grindr.
A teen charged with the murder of another teen on Prince Edward Island last year has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Armed men belonging to the Gran Grif gang killed at least 70 people, including three infants, as they swept through a Haitian town shooting automatic rifles at residents, a spokesperson for the United Nations' Human Rights Office said on Friday.
At least two people are dead and others are injured after a fire ripped through a century-old building near Montreal's City Hall, sources told Noovo Info.
The owners of a North York condominium say they are facing a $70,000 special assessment to fix their building's parking garage. '$70,000 is a lot of money. It makes me very nervous and stressed out of nowhere for this huge debt to come in,' said Ligeng Guo.
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The owner of a Gatineau, Que. caf茅 says it's 'silly' that Quebec's language watchdog is telling the business to write its Instagram posts in French.
A teen charged with the murder of another teen on Prince Edward Island last year has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.
More than half of the 205 firearms lost by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police since 2020 have been recovered, but two machine guns remain missing.
Armed men belonging to the Gran Grif gang killed at least 70 people, including three infants, as they swept through a Haitian town shooting automatic rifles at residents, a spokesperson for the United Nations' Human Rights Office said on Friday.
Iran鈥檚 supreme leader on Friday praised the country鈥檚 recent missile strike on Israel and said it was ready to do it again if necessary, state TV reported.
The U.S. and British militaries struck more than a dozen Houthi targets in Yemen on Friday, going after weapons systems, bases and other equipment belonging to the Iranian-backed rebels, U.S. officials confirmed.
Prosecutors have charged a Michigan man with killing and dismembering a janitor he met on the dating app Grindr.
UN peacekeepers are staying in their positions on Lebanon鈥檚 southern border despite Israel鈥檚 request to vacate some areas before it launched its ground operation against Hezbollah militants, the UN peacekeeping chief said Thursday.
An Israeli airstrike on a West Bank cafe that the military said targeted Palestinian militants also killed a family of four, including two young children, relatives told The Associated Press on Friday.
NDP House leader Peter Julian says there's more his party wants to do in Parliament before the next election, but if the current dysfunction continues it will become a factor in how they vote on a confidence measure.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to announce funding to support French-speaking African countries and initiatives to promote the French language in the Francophonie.
Defence Minister Bill Blair says Israel has the right to defend itself in 'a calibrated and proportional way' following Iran鈥檚 ballistic missile attack against Israel on Tuesday.
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Staff at Saskatoon's Royal University Hospital are calling for systemic changes just two days after its emergency room was more than three times above its capacity.
An Ontario child has died after coming in contact with a rabid bat, a health official confirmed on Wednesday.
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Alphabet's Google is testing showing check marks next to certain companies on its search results, a company spokesperson said on Friday, in a move aimed at helping users identify verified sources and steer clear of fake websites.
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A group of classic car enthusiasts donated hundreds of blankets to nursing homes in Nova Scotia.
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What does New Westminster's t蓹m蓹sew虛tx史 Aquatic and Community Centre have in common with a historic 68,000-seat stadium in Beijing, an NFL stadium and the aquatics venue for the Paris Olympics? They've all been named among the world's most beautiful sports venues for 2024.
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NDP Leader David Eby is vowing to raise British Columbia's speculation and vacancy tax on empty homes if re-elected premier this month.
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A 21-year-old man who was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a Toronto police officer this week was out on bail at the time of the alleged offence, court documents obtained by 愛污传媒 Toronto show.
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Brian Masse, Windsor-West鈥檚 Member of Parliament (MP), stood before the House of Commons on Friday, criticizing the eased hazardous material restrictions at the Ambassador Bridge.
NDP Leader David Eby is vowing to raise British Columbia's speculation and vacancy tax on empty homes if re-elected premier this month.
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A northeastern Ontario jury has started deliberating in Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard's sexual assault trial, we can now tell you what they weren't allowed to hear.
A suspect who accused Thunder Bay police of being responsible for his throat injury actually hurt himself when he swallowed a large amount of drugs.
An outfitter in Kenora, Ont., and two individuals have been fined a total of $9,500 for bear hunting offences, including abandoning a bear they shot and using it as bait to hunt another bear.
He may not have logged the fastest time or even gone the full distance, but residents of a Newfoundland town agree the goat who unexpectedly joined the local weekend half marathon was the event's undisputed champion.
A mother in a community where the cost of living is one of the highest in the country says grocery prices are 'inhumane' and retailers are putting profits ahead of people鈥檚 basic human right to food.
A soccer game in England on Tuesday night drove a spike in online traffic across the Atlantic to a website launched by the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
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