A LaRue County man has been arrested in Elizabethtown for his role in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Joseph Howe, 40, of Magnolia, was arrested Friday and charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers, interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding, and destruction of government property, as well as related misdemeanor offenses, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
According to court documents, on January 6, 2021, Howe and others left a “Stop the Steal” rally near the Ellipse and traveled towards the U.S. Capitol. En route, Howe was recorded on a camera stating, “We’re getting into that building,” prosecutors said.
Howe was wearing a body armor-style vest underneath his outer jacket. Upon arriving near the Capitol, Howe and others illegally entered the grounds. Howe went to the front of a mob of rioters confronting law enforcement officers at bike rack barriers near the scaffolding of the northwest steps, prosecutors said.
“Police officers struggled for control of barriers, and some used their batons to try to keep the rioters away,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. “A few minutes later, Howe can be seen on video wielding a baton, similar to those used by police. By then, he also was wearing eye goggles and a gas mask.
“Once the police line was broken, Howe ran up the stairway toward the Upper West Terrace. As he ran up the stairs, he pushed a U.S. Capitol Police officer.
“Howe was among the first rioters to reach the Upper West Terrace and Senate Wing Door. He kicked the door at nearly the same time that the building was first breached by rioters. He then went inside at approximately 2:13 p.m.
“He moved through the building including the Crypt and once in the Crypt, he verbally engaged with law enforcement officers, pushing forward through the police line. He exited the Crypt at 2:38 p.m.”
In the 21 months since the insurrection, more than 880 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 270 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.
The investigation remains ongoing.
(Photo: Joseph Howe kicking a door at the U.S. Capitol during the January 2, 2021, insurrection, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Justice via the Courier Journal)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
