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Nancy Pelosi criticized the Republican National Committee for calling the January attack on the Capitol a legitimate political discourse.

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Guy Reffitt is charged with five felony counts in connection with the January riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The outcome of the trial will determine if hundreds of other people will seek to enter into plea deals with the government. The jury selection has taken on more scrutiny because of that. Many potential jurors might not be able to maintain impartiality in the case.

Rioters clash with police trying to enter Capitol building through the front doors. Rioters broke windows and breached the Capitol building in an attempt to overthrow the results of the 2020 election. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Rioters clash with police trying to enter Capitol building through the front doors. Rioters broke windows and breached the Capitol building in an attempt to overthrow the results of the 2020 election. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)

A man who worked as a congressional page said he once gave tours of the Capitol. The woman said her daughter works for the Department of Homeland Security. A man said his stepmother worked in the Trump administration, and that his father was a major donor to the former Republican president. People who live near the Capitol said they have friends who work there. Some people said they had former FBI agents in their family.

Potential jurors were called to answer questions about their views on the riot that delayed the certification of Joe Biden's win in the 2020 presidential election.

Reffitt, a 49-year-old Texas oil industry worker and alleged member of the far-right Three Percenters militia, is charged with bringing a firearm onto Capitol grounds, interfering with police officers protecting the building from rioters, and threatening his own children if they reported. He is the first person to have his case heard by a jury.

No one can come into this courtroom with a blank slate, but we don't want jurors who have formed an opinion of what happened that day. Friedrich said that the main question for her would be whether a juror's views are so strong that he or she cannot impartially judge.

Guy Reffitt
A video frame grab shows Guy Reffitt outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (Dept. of Justice)

Reffitt's attorney had requested a change of venue for the trial, arguing that jurors in Washington, D.C. cannot be impartial. Friedrich said that Reffitt's defense could try to get the trial moved if many of the potential jurors in Washington ended up being disqualified for bias.

Friedrich, who was appointed to the U.S. District Court in Washington by former President Donald Trump, began Monday's jury selection by reading 27 questions aloud to about 80 potential jurors. Prospective jurors were asked about the events of January 6 and whether they followed the news or not. The pamphlet was handed out to jurors by someone outside the courthouse. It is not clear what was in the pamphlet.

Friedrich questioned the jurors individually. She said that attorneys for the prosecution and defense would need to approve a total of 40 jurors. On Monday, 25 had qualified. Friedrich said she would finish jury selection by Tuesday.

Judge Dabney Friedrich
Judge Dabney Friedrich looks out from the bench during the jury selection for Guy Wesley Reffitt on Monday. (Dana Verkouteren via AP Photo)

One woman said she didn't follow the attack because the media sensationalized it. One woman said she was aware of him because of the story in the Washington Post.

The first day of jury selection highlighted the challenges involved in prosecuting Jan. 6 cases in Washington, where most potential jurors have not only seen at least some news coverage of the attack but, in many cases, have either direct or indirect ties to the federal government or law enforcement.

Several of the jurors said they watched the events unfold on television at their homes near the Capitol, some even became emotional while answering questions about their experiences that day. Most of the people who said they had formed opinions said they would be able to put their personal views aside if they were selected to serve on the jury.

Reffitt's defense attorney moved to have prospective jurors removed from the jury pool because they weren't sure.

One woman who was the first to be struck from the pool said she didn't think she could be impartial.

I said it from my heart. A man who was sent home said that everyone who went in was guilty.

Trump supporters take over the steps of the Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, as the Congress works to certify the electoral college votes. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Trump supporters take over the steps of the Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, as the Congress works to certify the electoral college votes. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

The others in the pool were not dismissed despite the fact that they might be leaning towards siding with either the prosecution or the defense.

One woman mentioned recent interviews she had heard with Julie Kelly, a right-wing commentator and author of a book, about the Capitol attack.

Kelly promotes the conspiracy theory that the attack on the Capitol was orchestrated by the FBI on her website and on her feed.

Kelly responded to a potential Reffitt juror's impartial comments Monday, asking if she should make the jury.

A woman who was not dismissed after the first day said that her daughter had worked for the Department of Homeland Security for the last four or five years and that when she heard the judge speak about the Reffitt case, she was leaning toward the government.

The acts were wrong against the government. Everyone living in the city was at risk. The woman later said she was confident that she could decide the case based on the information presented in court.

The U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
The U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Reffitt has not been accused of entering the Capitol building. According to prosecutors, when he charged at police officers outside the building, he was wearing body armor and a video camera attached to a helmet and was carrying a handgun in a waist holder. He retreated after the officer sprayed him.

Reffitt was charged with obstructing an official proceeding, interfering with law enforcement during a civil disorder, transporting firearms to Washington, D.C., and carrying a firearm on Capitol grounds. He was charged with obstruction of justice because he told his teenage son and daughter that they would be traitors if they reported him to law enforcement. He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Reffitt's children are among about a dozen witnesses the prosecutors plan to call during the trial. Three Capitol Police officers interacted with Reffitt on Jan. 6, and a fellow member of the Texas chapter of the Three Percenter militia group who traveled with Reffitt to Washington and back to Texas.

The rioters got within 2 doors of Vice President Mike Pence's office. See how in this 3D explainer from Yahoo Immersive.

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