Daniel Ray Caldwell
Daniel Caldwell is a father, grandfather, husband, engineer and patriot. He served America as a Marine for several tours in the middle east. Unfortunately, he left the service disabled. Details about what was disability are scant but as with many of those returning from their tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, PTSD is likely the culprit. He was honorably discharged in 1997 with the rank of Corporal and came back to the states, starting an upward career as an Engineer. After settling in The Colony, a suburb north of Dallas, Texas, Daniel first worked at SpeedFam-IPEC as a field service engineer. He was later hired by the prestigious Texas Instruments as a foreman and project engineer. From there, Daniel owned his own company and was thriving despite his lingering disability. All this to say it seemed to everyone, his co-workers, family and friends that Daniel was a stable, law-abiding man. And he was. He believed in the rule of law and that laws were for all Americans regardless of their social status or influence. That’s why he felt betrayed by the election that led to the J6 protests.
Daniel – and many other veterans like him – fumed at the idea that the election was riddled with inconsistencies and downright fraud; ballet harvesting, secret vote counting, entire district completely changing course overnight. He had heard enough and wanted to go to D.C. to be counted among those patriots who merely wanted our laws and norms to be followed.
He drove to D.C. and stayed in a hotel in Arlington, Virginia and was on the scene early to hear President Trump speak. After the rally his emotions were ramped up as he walked to the Capital. Anticipating a confrontation, Daniel dressed in fatigues and carried pepper spray as a defensive tool. He had heard that the D.C. Metro Police would likely be very aggressive if the crowd got rowdy. He wasn’t wrong. No sooner had they started their peaceful march, cooperating with the Capital Place, than the Metro Police opened fire on them! Flash bangs, tear gas, rubber bullets in some cases. Battle tested veterans like Daniel fought back in self-defense. That’s when he admits to losing it, probably from his unconscious memories of his military experience. He used his spray and doused over a dozen officers. Daniel then went inside the Capital for about 2 minutes and ultimately left to return to his hotel.
He was arrested without incident on February 10, 2021 at his home in Texas. Daniel was facing 6 charges to which he initially plead not guilty. Luckily, he was able to have a good attorney represent him, Robert L. Jenkins. Through a bargain, Daniel agreed to plead ‘guilty’. With the new plea prosecutors dropped all charges except one count of Assaulting, Resisting, or Impeding Certain Officers Using a Dangerous Weapon. Had he continued his not-guilty plea, the prosecutors were ready to do to him what they’d done to many others; stack charges. It’s a tool they use to maximize sentencing by stacking several charges, some of them virtually identical, and turning some of them from misdemeanors into felonies. If found guilty of all of the charges he might have been sentenced to twice what he got.
At trial, Daniel was remorseful saying, “I clearly let my emotions take control.” And he apologized to U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. Before sentencing he also remarked, “being a Marine, I should have known better. … I wish I could take it back, but I can’t.” But he had to have been thinking, as would any rational person, that his war experience probably triggered his aggressive response to someone making him and his fellow protestors. Still, he took responsibility.
After two years in prison, commonly called The American Gulag, he was finally sentenced to 68 months, which includes the 2 years already served. After he’s released, Daniel with suffer through 36 months of supervised release and a special assessment of $100. He’ll also have to pay $2,000 in restitution for damage done to the Capitol during the protests. Sadly, Daniel will miss the birth of his first grandchild, miss his middle child’s military deployment, and won’t be able to be by his father’s side, who’s battling cancer. Daniel’s wife is now the sole provider for the household and is struggling to make ends meet.
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Do pray for Daniel.
If you would like to write to Daniel, his mailing address is;
Daniel Ray Caldwell
PID# 30013-509
FCI Seagoville
Federal Correctional Institution
P.O. Box 9000
Seagoville, TX 75159
Please note: Prisoner mail is reviewed by guards. Please keep messages of encouragement to a general and/or religious nature. Do not mention the events of January 6th or other current events under criminal investigation