Cops Send Alleged Capitol Rioter Back to Jail After Finding AR-15 in His Car

A North Carolina man who was out on pretrial release on charges stemming from his alleged involvement in the Capitol riot is back in custody after he was arrested for trying to flee a drunk driving arrest and possessing an AR-15.

On Tuesday, a federal judge revoked the pretrial release of 29-year-old James Tate Grant, based on a Dec. 7 incident at a Denny’s restaurant in Garner, North Carolina. Shortly after 5 a.m., a Garner police officer arrived at the Denny’s to respond to a suicide threat, and Grant waved the cop down, according to a police report. 

During the conversation, Grant explained his involvement in “the January 6th incident” and told the cop: “When you run my name, you will see.” 

The Department of Justice alleges that Grant was one of the first people who crossed a police barricade during the Capitol riot, and that he assaulted a U.S. Capitol Police officer by shoving a metal barricade into him. 

Grant has been charged with several crimes stemming from his alleged involvement in the riot, including assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers, obstruction of an official proceeding, and an act of physical violence on the Capitol grounds. He was picked up on those charges in October in nearby Cary, North Carolina. 

The cop attempted to take Grant into custody for a DWI, at which point Grant briefly attempted to flee before dropping to the ground and saying, “Just kill me now,” and “It’s over,” according to the report. Grant was later transported to a hospital in Raleigh for an emergency commitment. 

When police searched his car, they found an AR-15, as well as “hundreds of rounds of ammunition, weapons accessories, and fatigues.” Grant’s conditions for release on his riot charges included prohibiting him from possessing a firearm, violating local laws, and “us[ing] alcohol excessively.” 

“Grant’s statements are of such a concerning nature that there is reason to believe he is a danger not only to the community but also to himself,” prosecutors wrote in their motion last month to revoke Grant’s pretrial release. “The Defendant had an opportunity to respect the Government and Court’s trust in his release pending trial, but has apparently made the conscious decision to abuse that privilege.”

U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Kelly agreed with prosecutors.

In his order, Kelly wrote that there is “no condition or combination of conditions of release that will assure that [Grant] will not pose a danger to the safety of any other person or the community,” and that he is “unlikely to abide by any condition or combination of conditions of release.” 

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