Joseph Lino Padilla
AKA: Jose Padilla

He went to D.C. on that day to have his voice heard. But as a precaution, like many of the men and women who served in the miliary, Jose brough along protective gear.  No weapons or anything along those lines but heavy clothing and a scuba mask, thinking that if things got out of hand, police would use tear gas and other ‘non-lethal’ weapons. He was not wrong.  Like most of the police interactions that fateful day, everything was peaceful until police started using tear gas on the crowds. That angered the crowd.  Jose reacted and pushed back against the shielded riot police trying to keep them from entering the Capital.  He was later charged with assaulting a police officer with a flag pole, the most common charge among all the felonies leveled at him and his fellow protestors.

When the melee started, Jose had this to say, “as a first-hand observer of every point of last night, that it was not Antifa. They were Patriots who were trying to restore the Republic after being attacked by cops, and who struck first.”  Many have said that the instigators were Antifa dressed as Trump supporters.  But others say they were indeed just protesting patriots wanting to occupy Congress and do what is prescribed in paragraph two of the Declaration of Independence which reads;

“… whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

Many without the D.C. establishment will argue that this is not the case. However, there it is in writing.  Like it or not, civil disobedience against a government with tyrannical tendencies is baked into the writings of the Founding Fathers and the Constitution.

After the dustsettled,he left the next day for home.  But it wasn’t over.  Far from it. On February 23^rd of 2021, law enforcement from several agencies descended on their rental home in tactical gear, bull horns blaring, an Army tank in the street and drones buzzing overhead. For one non-violent man. Not only is Jose arrested but Rebekah was handcuffed and removed from the presence of her terrified boys. Then in another move of sheer intimidation, officers threatened to have her children taken into custody by Child Protective Services!

Jose was held for a month before he was indicted without bond.  During that time, his jailer let her views on him and his fellow protestors be known on social media; Deputy Warden Kathleen Landerkin made no secret of her hatred for Trump supporters in several dozen Tweets with classless screeds such as:

“F*** everyone who supports Trump.” – posted on December 11, 2021
“I can’t wait til you’re all extinct.”
“White men are more dangerous than immigrants.”
“If you are in the crowd behind Trump you are trash.”

To many observers, it seems that the entire legal system is stacked against Jose and his fellow protestors. In fact federal prosecutors also used a method called ‘stacking’ to gin up longer sentences. In other words -it’s a method to make the accused look worse to judge and jury.  His charges were… 10 total, 8 felony charges and two misdemeanors, which included two counts of civil disorder, assaulting, impeding, or resisting officers.  Assaulting resisting or impeding certain officers with a dangerous weapon, which was… a flag pole.  Obstruction of an official proceeding. This statute is the one the DOJ took from a financial crime act and twisted it to apply to J6rs.  Because this statute is a felony, it enables them to upgrade some or all of the other misdemeanor charges to felonies, thus maximizing the sentences.  It is being challenged in the Supreme Court. Entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon, again… a flag pole. Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon. Engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds with a dangerous weapon. The misdemeanor charges included disorderly conduct on the Capitol grounds or buildings and an act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings.

Jose could not afford a good lawyer so he opted for a bench trial, letting the judge decide his fate.  And after serving two years in jail, on May 3^rd, 2023, he was found guilty of 10 charges, however, he was not sentenced until September 13^th of 2023.  It was stiff – 78 months in prison with credit for time served, 24 months of probation.

Meanwhile, his family was evicted from their rental home shortly after his arrest.  They were only given three days to vacate. Rebekah had to scramble and wound up getting help from her mother to stay afloat, and she is now working 3 jobs. Jose was the sole provider before being convicted.  They are hanging on by a thread and ask for prayers that Jose’s reputation will be restored, a new trial and their financial needs. 

But Jose is staying resilient.  Even his incarceration has not silenced him. Jose mostly likely is a political prisoner not unlike third world countries.  From prison he writes;

“The Biden Administration’s Justice Department,” Padilla wrote, “is denying equal justice to Republican and Conservative political protestors.You should be inundating your… Senators and Representatives with calls and letters telling them that the persecution of a person because of their beliefs, even if you find those beliefs to be offensive or distasteful, is not consistent with our beliefs as Americans, nor our Constitution.”