An east Georgia man pleaded guilty Monday to a charge related to his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol riot, making him the third Georgian to enter a plea this month.
Crawford resident Nolan Harold Kidd pleaded to a misdemeanor charge of illegally demonstrating in the Capitol and faces a possible sentence of up to six months in prison and a fine of up to $5,000. He will be sentenced in May.
Kidd joins Matthew J. Webler of Decatur and Jonathan Davis Laurence of Duluth, who also entered misdemeanor guilty pleas this month.
The flurry of plea deals comes as the Department of Justice begins clearing out dozens of low-level cases more than a year after hundreds of people from a pro-Trump rally broke into the Capitol as Congress was preparing to certify Joe Biden’s electoral victory.
According to the George Washington University Program on Extremism, more than 200 of the 735 people so far charged in the sweeping investigation have pleaded guilty. However, many of the more serious and complicated felony cases, including two prominent cases involving the Oath Keeper militia, likely will take many more months to sort out.
Kidd’s co-defendant, Savannah Danielle McDonald of Elberton, entered her guilty plea on Jan. 19. She is scheduled for sentencing in April. Kidd and McDonald were 21 and 20, respectively, at the time of their arrests, making them among the youngest defendants in the Jan. 6 riot.
Prosecutors said the two posted photos of their exploits on social media soon after returning from the riot.
“Just made it home,” Kidd allegedly wrote on Facebook, “I have tons of photos and videos to share with you guys.”
The post, included in court records, ended with a smiling emoji surrounded by hearts. Below the message, Kidd allegedly posted smiling photos of himself with McDonald at several locations inside the Capitol.
Credit: FBI affidavit
Credit: FBI affidavit
The pair are among 17 Georgians who have been charged in the Jan. 6 riot. In FBI interviews, McDonald and Kidd told slightly differing stories about how they got into the Capitol. McDonald said they were waved inside by Capitol Police, while Kidd said they entered through an open door. Their accounts given to journalists and friends on Jan. 6 differed still.
McDonald told a film crew outside the Capitol that she was “tear-gassed three times.”
In a group chat on the app Snapchat, Kidd allegedly wrote, “Me and Savannah are (expletive) STORMTROOPERS.”
On Monday, Kidd, who attended the hearing in Washington via video conference from Georgia, sounded unsure and even confused when answering U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper’s questions, including whether he was pleading guilty.
“How do you plead?” Cooper asked.
“Uh?” Kidd responded.
“Do you plead guilty?” the judge repeated.
“Oh! Yeah,” Kidd replied. “I’m sorry. I didn’t understand.”
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