A federal judge on Thursday lashed out at a Georgia lawyer accused of storming the U.S. Capitol, saying the lawyer had been seduced by a dangerous ideology that “poisoned this man’s mind.”
The comments came during a telephone hearing in U.S. District Court in Georgia, where U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles Weigle rejected William McCall Calhoun Jr.’s request to be allowed to stay at his sister’s house in Macon, Georgia. Instead, the judge ordered him to remain behind bars for now.
Calhoun’s social media accounts referenced his alleged ability to fire sniper headshots, and called for the “slaughter” of political enemies, FBI Special Agent Tim Armentrout testified. Calhoun bragged on social media that he was among the first rioters to break into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office on Jan. 6, and predicted the powerful Democrat “probably would have been torn into little pieces” if rioters had found her there, prosecutors said.
“I have no comfort in sending a probation officer to your house to meet with you — I would be afraid for their life,” the judge told Calhoun, 57. He said the Capitol invaders “tore the place to shreds” and told Calhoun that “you showed that there was nothing that would hold you back except force.”
Calhoun, who practices law in the South Georgia town of Americus, faces charges including violent entry or disorderly conduct, and entering a restricted building.
