Federal prosecutors said in a court filing on Sunday that Fox News host Tucker Carlson edited out key footage of the "QAnon Shaman" in his broadcast last week making it appear everything he and others did during the January 6 Capitol riot was peaceful.
The filing was a response to a motion by one of the Proud Boys defendants, Dominic Pezzola, to dismiss the charges of seditious conspiracy based on Carlson's footage, The Hill reported. Pezzola and four others are currently on trial for their actions that day.
The Chansley footage showed by Carlson is not related to the Proud Boys case, but Pezzola's lawyer filed for dismissal based on it because Carlson said it showed the people who came into the Capitol that day were acting no different that "tourists." A claim rebutted by senators and congress members of both parties who were there that day.
"The televised footage lacks the context of what occurred before and after the footage. Chansley entered the building as part of a violent crowd," prosecutors said in their filing.
The Justice Department said Carlson's edited footage showed the "QAnon Shaman," whose real name is Jacob Chansley, walking unimpeded by a group of police officers who followed him through the Capitol. But the footage spans only four minutes out of about an hour Chansley was in the Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
"The televised footage shows Chansley’s movements only from approximately 2:56 p.m. to 3:00 p.m," according to the filing. "Prior to that time, Chansley had, amongst other acts, breached a police line at 2:09 p.m. with the mob, entered the Capitol less than one minute behind Pezzola during the initial breach of the building, and faced off with members of the U.S. Capitol Police for more than thirty minutes in front of the Senate Chamber doors while elected officials, including the Vice President of the United States, were fleeing from the chamber."
They continued: "Chansley then entered the Senate Gallery, where he proceeded to scream obscenities while other rioters rifled through the desks of U.S. Senators on the floor below. All these actions were captured by Senate floor and/or CCTV cameras."
Chansley was sentenced to 41 months in prison after pleading guilty to obstruction. He can be seen in other video, including live media coverage on the day of the riot, standing at the House speaker's rostrum and screaming. He admitted to leaving a menacing note to then-Vice President Mike Pence reading, "It’s Only A Matter of Time. Justice Is Coming!"
"Tucker Carlson Tonight" Senior Executive Producer Justin Wells told The Hill through a Fox News spokesperson: "Our team’s review of available surveillance footage of Mr. Chansley is consistent with our reporting."
Carlson was allowed by GOP House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to view 44,000 hours of Capitol security footage. Democrats and some Republicans have criticized McCarthy for allowing only Carlson to view the footage, but the speaker said over the weekend that access will be rolled out over time to all media outlets.
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