Griffin, however, attended the meeting and even spoke during the public comment session. He was found guilty of the charge at a federal district court hearing on March 22 and sentenced on June 17 to 14 days of time served and ordered to pay $500 in restitution, a $3,000 fine and complete community service and one year of supervised release. Couy Griffin, whose violent rhetoric Trump promoted, is arrested - The Address 1101 New York Avenue Alamogordo, NM 88310 Nobody thinks a random tourist could sort of climb up there, right? McFadden said. Resolutions, when passed, do not hold the weight of law, rather indicate positions of understanding or support. "There are several bases for removal including conviction of a felony or misdemeanor 'involving moral turpitude' and 'failure, neglect or refusal to discharge the duties of office'. I feel like I was just really railroaded," Griffin said. Griffin: A friend of mine in Roswell, New Mexico. (Screenshot via the Otero County Commission livestream) Attorneys Janani Iyengar and Kimberly Paschall also cited a video Griffin posted of himself on the inauguration stage next to the Capitol during the riot that forced the evacuation of lawmakers meeting to certify Joe Bidens election victory. Now he has regrets., In middle of Jan. 6 riot, Oath Keepers chief reached out to Proud Boys. Couy Dale Griffin (born 1973) is a former politician who served from 2019 to 2022 as a county commissioner for District 2 of Otero County, New Mexico, which covers Tularosa, Three Rivers, La Luz, the western parts of Alamogordo, and the Mescalero Apache Reservation.In September 2022, Griffin was removed from office under the Disqualification . In August 2020, the Commission unanimously passed a resolution on the same topic. Were your resource. The hearing was held on April 8, 2021. [2] District Court Judge Manuel Arrieta ruled on April 8, 2021, that the recall effort could move forward. But Griffin also used the final minute of his allotted time to address his removal from office, telling those in attendance that his computer was seized by county officials before he was notified that District Court Judge Francis J. Mathew had ruled Griffin could no longer serve in his elected position or any other for the rest of his life. Couy Griffin's Tweets. He called it a great day for America and added, The people are showing that they have had enough, prosecutors said. That resolution was also sponsored by Griffin. Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. An unusual series of items is scheduled for discussion at the March 11 Otero County Commission. Assistant US Attorney Janani Iyengar said Griffin climbed over metal bike racks, up a plywood ramp and shouted over the crowd about his belief that the election was stolen from Trump. SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) - A prominent figure in New Mexico politics surrounding the events of the 2020 presidential election, Otero County Commission Couy Griffin has been removed from office ba Thats also when he learned he no longer had access to his county office, and that his county-issued computer had been removed from his office. And in May, officials in Georgia ruled that Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene could remain on the ballot after her role in the Capitol riot. District Court Judge Francis Mathew ruled that Couy Griffin, an Otero County commissioner, is now disqualified from holding public office because he violated Section 3 of the Fourteenth. Gemunu Amarasinghe / AP file "I have huge concerns with the voting machines," said Commissioner. "Elected officials must respect the rule of law, and we will evaluate whether this misdemeanor convictionand any of Griffin's other actions warrant his removal from public office," Mares said March 22. Griffin was booted from the board earlier in the week by court order due to his participation in the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Griffin represented himself during a two-day bench trial last month in District Court in Santa Fe. Couy Griffin, a county commissioner in Otero County, New Mexico, speaks on June 17 outside federal court in Washington, D.C., where he was convicted of entering a restricted area during the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. "Griffin shall be removed from his position as an Otero County Commissioner effective immediately.". Judge removes Otero County's Couy Griffin for Jan. 6 role : NPR In his ruling on the case, Mathew contended that Griffin was not eligible to hold office because of his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riots. "The court's decision sent a message that powerful people can't rise up against the execution of the laws of the United States and the peaceful transfer of power without consequences," he says, "and the country needs to be protected against those who would undermine our democratic principles.". U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden found Griffin, who is also an elected New Mexico county commissioner, guilty of illegally entering or remaining on restricted grounds after a one-day bench trial, and not guilty of a second misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct. Social Services Annex: 215 Raton Ave. [1] Its county seat is Alamogordo. He continued to claim he was a victim of political persecution although his judge was appointed by Trump in 2017 and served as a Justice Department criminal division official in the Trump and George W. Bush administrations. The decision against Griffin, who made headlines earlier this year by refusing to certify his county's election results, comes after some similar, high-profile Fourteenth Amendment challenges to incumbent lawmakers across the country failed. Their first witness was Matthew Struck, who joined Griffin at the Capitol and served as his videographer. They wont even give me a key to my office so I can get my stuff out without being surveilled by the sheriffs department.. FILE - Otero County, New Mexico Commissioner Couy Griffin speaks to reporters as he arrives at federal court in Washington, June 17, 2022. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. "A county commissioner could propose a resolution saying that pigs can fly, it doesn't make it true.". New Mexico county official convicted of January 6 trespassing - CNN Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin leaves the federal court in Washington on March. CREW represented three New Mexico residents who brought the civil lawsuit against Griffin this past March and called for him to be removed. [2] Its southern boundary is the Texas state line. Couy Griffin attends Otero County Commission meeting as a member of the [1], Recall supporters filed paperwork on March 11, 2021. Otero County Commission Vice-Chairman Couy Griffin sponsored two resolutions on the Commission's agenda: one calling for the FBI to investigate the destruction of the Soldier's Monument in Santa Fe, and another labeling New Mexico Gov. After a tense back-and-forth about who drafted the pleadings, Judge Francis Mathew denied the motion. January 6, 2021 was a dark day in our history. Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin skirted extra prison time for Griffin, one of three members of the Otero County Commission in southern New Mexico, is among a handful of riot defendants who either held public office or ran for a government leadership post in the 2 1/2 years before the attack. Griffin was unhappy that Stephanie DuBois, a Democrat, was appointed to his old seat . New Mexico StateAuditor Brian Coln said his office's work would continue in the face of the conviction. In considering closing arguments submitted by Griffin in the case asking Mathew to consider the will of District 2 constituents, the judge said: "The irony of Mr. Griffin's argument that this Court should refrain from applying the law and consider the will of the people in District 2 of Otero County who retained him as a county commissioner against a recall effort as he attempts to defend his participation in an insurrection by a mob whose goal, by his own admission, was to set aside the results of a free, fair and lawful election by a majority of the people of the entire country (the will of the people) has not escaped this court.". All of this would suggest to a normal person that perhaps you should not be entering the area. The judge added that Griffin said in videos he recorded the next day and Jan. 14 that he joined a crowd that pushed through fencing into areas roped off by police for the inauguration. Ballot measures, Who represents me? McFadden found they did, after forcing the Secret Service to publicly confirm for the first time that Pence was evacuated to an underground Senate loading dock and remained there for four to five hours on the afternoon of Jan. 6. Failing to be present at county commission meetings, Being unable to perform his duties within his district due to being banned from the sovereign nation and lands of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, Filming a video inside the County Commission Administration building to solicit funds for a political organization, Filing a travel voucher with the county to pay for events that did not relate to his duties as a county commissioner, Soliciting and receiving a donation from a restricted donor. His name is Hiram., Griffin: As God as my witness I do not know his last name. Griffins mockery of Native American rites got him banned from Mescalero Apache Tribe lands. Official Couy Griffin found guilty of illegally entering Capitol Attempts by the Alamogordo Daily News to contact Griffin about the ruling were unsuccessful. "His protestations and his characterizations of his actions and the events of Jan. 6, 2021 are not credible and amounted to nothing more than attempting to put lipstick on a pig," Mathew's ruling states. The resolution states that employees and elected . Couy Griffin is no longer the District 2 Otero County Commissioner per a ruling by District Judge Francis Mathew. Amy Barela District 2 Commissioner. An effort to recall Couy Griffin (R) from his position as the District 2 representative on the Otero County Commission in New Mexico did not go to a vote in 2021. "I just want those that have already come to the conclusion that I'm guilty, I just again ask you to put the brakes on a little bit and let the legal process take place," Griffin said. Ballotpedia features 408,500 encyclopedic articles written and curated by our professional staff of editors, writers, and researchers. Judge Unseats Official Who Trespassed at Capitol on Jan. 6 [3], Griffin was elected to the three-member Otero County Commission in 2018, defeating Democratic candidate Christopher S. Jones with 65% of the vote. Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin gestures before getting into a car after the first day of his trial in federal court in Washington on March 21. State legislature | We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. , Photos: Sky News 13 flies over Good Friday pilgrimages, PHOTOS: Storm moves through New Mexico leaving snow, Snow causes difficult driving conditions across NM, Map: New Mexico Veterans Monuments and Memorials, BestReviews.com - Top gifts to make everyone happy this spring, Surprise your mom with one of these Mothers Day, Mothers Day inspo: This foot massager has 20,000, Drew Barrymores Walmart collection is perfect for, Best Mothers Day gifts for the budding plant mom, 13 Broadcast Pl SW, Albuquerque, NM, 87104, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Pinned Tweet. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. "I didn't have any intent of being a part of an insurrection or a violent mob. After climbing over a stone wall and entering a restricted area outside the Capitol, Griffin said, This is our house we should all be armed, according to prosecutors. ", Mares did not elaborate on what "moral turpitude" entails. Otero County Commissioner and founder of Cowboys for Trump. Griffin, one of three members of the Otero County Commission in southern New Mexico, is among a handful of riot defendants who either held. Lujan Grisham knows that New Mexicans expect their elected officials to uphold our Constitution and rule of law, Sackett said. Griffin had vowed to arrive at the courthouse on horseback on Monday. State District Court Judge Francis Mathew wrote in his decision that Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, founder of a group called "Cowboys for Trump," violated Section 3 of the 14th. Prior to the verdict, the New Mexico Attorney General's Office discussed what a conviction would mean for the Otero County Commission, where Griffin holds the District 2 seat. SANTA FE A New Mexico judge ordered Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin be removed from office, effective immediately, ruling that the attack on the Capitol was an insurrection and that Griffin's participation in it disqualified him under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. "(Griffin) became constitutionally disqualified from federal and state positions specified (under the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment, Section 3) and forfeited his current office as Otero County Commissioner effective Jan. 6, 2021," Mathew's ruling states. Assistant U.S. He was charged with "knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority," according to the Alamogordo Daily News. Counties | At the hearing, both recall supporters and Griffin were able to present evidence and witnesses. Jeter Downs needs to play to develop. He covers politics and criminal justice and has reported on New Mexico for the Las Vegas Optic, Santa Fe Reporter, Los Angeles Times and others. District 2 Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, 48 of Tularosa, was found guiltyin federal court March 22 during a bench trial for trespassing on federal grounds during theduring the Jan.6, 2021 Capitol riot. Nicole Maxwell can be contacted by email at nmaxwell@alamogordonews.com, by phone at 575-415-6605 or on Twitter at @nicmaxreporter. However, after Griffin was arrested in January 2021, Otero County business could continue so long as a quorum of at least two county commissioners were present at Otero County Commission meetings, the meetings can continue. Coronavirus: Otero County approves out-of-state travel resolution Instead, he showed up as a passenger in a pickup truck that had a horse trailer on the back. He had also rhetorically suggested that the blood of political foes could be spilled at the Capitol in defense of the right to bear firearms. I only know him by his first name, which his first name is Hiramand hes not a licensed attorney, hes not a BAR-certified attorney, hes a friend of mine who knows the law.. The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. In a statement released on January 19, 2021, the two commissioners said, "Couy Griffin from his first day as an Otero County Commissioner had devoted himself to promoting Cowboys for Trump for Trump organization rather than being a county commissioner who serves the citizens of Otero County who elected him.
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