
The infamous ‘QAnon’ Shaman - who became a focus of the Capitol Hill insurrection on January 6 with his horned helmet - is back in the spotlight after his own lawyer called defendants in the case ‘short-bus people’ and claimed they have ‘brain damage’ which led to their actions.
Lawyer Albert Watkins said that his client Jacob Chansley wouldn’t have been in Washington DC if it wasn’t for the words of Donald Trump, and toldTalking Points Memo why he wants to separate Chansley from “thugs” who acted violently on the day.
Watkins said that Chansely has Asperger’s syndrome and that other defendants in the case are “short-bus people”.
“These are people with brain damage. They’re f****ng r******d, they’re on the goddamn spectrum,” Watkins said to TPM.
Watkins later called some of the other defendants “brothers” “sisters,” “neighbors,” and “coworkers,” and that they aren’t inherently awful people.
@mattshuham As my late girlfriend Coyote - an autism activist who was on the spectrum and had an autistic son as we… https://t.co/31d70FN8ni— Satyros Brucato says Amendment 14, Section 3 (@Satyros Brucato says Amendment 14, Section 3) 1621356582
Towards the end, Watkins said that what Trump supporters essentially went through was similar to Hitler in Nazi Germany, a bizarre comparison.
“F**k, they were subjected to four-plus years of goddamn propaganda the likes of which the world has not seen since f*****g Hitler.”
Naturally, Twitter had a lot to say about this unfiltered conversation, some of which even noted that knew people on the spectrum still wouldn’t behave this way.
@mattshuham That lawyer doesn’t understand what high functioning autism is. Many people on the spectrum are extrem… https://t.co/vqLFLu0Kf9— Juliet Jeske (@Juliet Jeske) 1621356181
@funder @mattshuham I had to write about this for @Salon because I am autistic myself. This isn't just some lame ex… https://t.co/WdloYuMgGz— Matthew Rozsa (@Matthew Rozsa) 1621382280
Others pointed out Watkins’ troubling language.
@funder @mattshuham So let's be clear on something -- he speaks for a lot of people. He isn't unhinged. He is wrong… https://t.co/ArYbqoFmcJ— Andy Kopsa 🇨🇿🇺🇸 (@Andy Kopsa 🇨🇿🇺🇸) 1621360252
@mattshuham this is bullshit, setting aside the horrendous language. autistic people aren't inherently violent nor… https://t.co/GDFC5Ce0Nn— Pé (@Pé) 1621360338
@mattshuham Just a reminder that Watkins represents the McCloskeys. Mark McCloskey is supposed to announce his run for the US Senate today.— Emily A. (@Emily A.) 1621354914
Someone also pointed out that Watkins is the lawyer to Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the couple who pointed guns in Missouri amid George Floyd protesters.
Court documents also delve into Chansley’s pardon request in which the attorney reached out to the then-White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, to confirm a request on behalf of Chansley.
But once Trump’s term came to a close and he offered pardons to rappers such as Lil Wayne and Kodak Black, but not Chansley, the defendant ultimately, was “compelled to reconcile his prior faith in former President Trump.”
Despite this, US District Judge Royce C. Lamberth wrote a memo that details why he is keeping Chansley detained while awaiting trial, that this wasn’t needed to prove Chansley’s sincerity.
“If defendant truly believes that the only reason he participated in an assault on the US Capitol was to comply with President Trump’s orders, this shows defendant’s inability (or refusal) to exercise his independent judgment and conform his behavior to the law,” Lamberth said.