People often view the United States as a free nation that’s 100% exempt from tyrannical actions.
However, the way the January 6 protesters have been treated, has destroyed this freedom illusion.
Just look at the case of Matthew L. Perna. According to a report by Joseph Hanneman of Epoch Times, Matthew L. Perna, one of the January 6 protesters who was arrested, ended up committing suicide on Feburary 25, 2022.
For months, Perna awaited his fate. The Department of Justice (DOJ) then requested a delay in his sentencing and announced it would pursue additional prison time. This was too much for Perna to bear.
“Worry, anxiety, stress had worn him down,” Geri Perna, the 37-year-old’s aunt, said during a Capitol Hill news conference on March 17. “He suffered constant nightmares and began throwing up blood. He was no longer comfortable leaving his home.
“One setback after another took its toll on him. And he just wanted it to be over. His attorney encouraged him to plead guilty by telling him that he would not receive a fair trial in this town.”
“Matt walked through an open door into this Capitol building, a monument that has been called the People’s House,” Perna added. “Standing here in front of this building does not give me a sense of pride, but instead [it] is replaced by a feeling of shame.”
Matthew Perna originally pled guilty to one felony count of obstruction of an official proceeding, specifically, the congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election results. In addition, he pled guilty to three misdemeanor charges.
On January 6, 2021, Perna spent roughly 20 minutes inside the Capitol. Perna’s sentence was originally scheduled for March 3, 2022.
However, things took a turn for the worse when prosecutors announced that they were seeking to tack on penalty enhancers that would have subjected Perna to 41 to 51 months in prison.
“Although Matthew Perna may have taken his last breath on Feb. 25, his death began in January 2021 after he was arrested and a nightmare like no other began,” Perna stated. “It affected everyone in our family, but we stood by his side proudly.”
Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene criticized the DOJ for not carrying out its legal obligations to hand over potentially exculpatory evidence to defense attorneys.
“At this time, the Department of Justice is still withholding hundreds of thousands of FBI records from defense attorneys,” Greene stated. “They’re not allowing them to have the records to prepare their cases. Trials are starting and defendants still don’t have all of their discovery. They deserve this to be able to defend themselves.”
Arizona Congressman Andy Biggs chimed in on the Perna case. He declared that the Department of Justice “really wanted to make an example of Matthew Perna.”
Unlike his colleagues, Biggs has stood up for the January 6 protesters, especially those jailed for breaching the Capitol. According to the Arizona Congressman, a significant number of the Capitol breach defendants have experienced protracted periods of solitary confinement.
“Solitary confinement for more than two weeks in international law is considered torture,” Biggs remarked. “These individuals, some of them have been tortured. That’s what’s going on here.”
Biggs took the judges in this case to task. He stated, “particularly the judges who’ve been biased because of political reasoning.”
“Just stop it. This is America. You have to grant due process,” Biggs declared. “The persecution that Matt Perna underwent by the mob on social media is too great for him to bear. We must correct it. We are a self-governing people. We can fix this, and we must fix this. This should never, ever be a situation again.”
Unlike most of his colleagues in the Republican Party, Biggs will stand up for January 6 protesters. The January 6 storming of the capitol was a turning point for the US. While there were several individuals who illegally breached the Capitol, most of the January 6 protesters were peaceful.
Plus, the punishments being meted out against these protestors are simply excessive. Biggs understands this and is correctly calling for accountability. The conditions the January 6 prisoners are facing are stuff that’s typical of the “rogue” states — Russia, Iran, China, etc.— that the US crusades against abroad.
As they say, you become what you fight.
Thankfully, America has leaders like Biggs who at least stand up for traditional American freedoms. We’re going to need more of that if we want to survive as a coherent nation that respects basic freedoms.
