Garth Nathaniel Walton, 32, of Florida, was detained on Tuesday for allegedly attacking police officers at the United States Capitol on January 6 by hurling a “long white pole” and attempting to knock them over with bike rack barriers. Walton, who lives in Yulee, Florida, made his first court appearance in his home state on July 15, according to a statement from federal prosecutors at the Justice Department.
According to court documents, he was released on an unsecured appearance bond of $5,000 on the condition that he not break the law and appear in court before a district judge in Washington, D.C. on August 8.
A criminal complaint charges him with seven felonies, including assaulting certain officers, obstructing law enforcement during a civil disturbance, participating in physical violence in a restricted facility or grounds, committing physical violence on Capitol grounds or buildings, and more.
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According to agents, body camera footage from Metropolitan Police Department officers responding to the mob attack showed Walton moving from the Lower West Plaza to a line of metal barricades, where he began to utilize the barriers to repeatedly and violently push cops back.
Prosecutors claim Walton fled once down the West Plaza stairs before assaulting officers and smashing a metal barricade into them.
“Walton then picked up a white pole and threw it at officers,” court records indicate.
A body camera image shows Walton “holding a long white pole before throwing it at officers,” according to the statement of facts.
Prosecutors stated that police officers from the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office in Florida responded to an “emergency” involving Walton on July 1, 2023, but did not specify what type of emergency. They claimed that it was during that encounter that a deputy sheriff interacted with Walton and identified him using his driver’s license.
The FBI did not question the deputy sheriff until April, when he was shown an open-source video showing Walton visiting the Capitol on January 6. The deputy informed the FBI that he thought the individual in the photos wearing a star-spangled baseball cap and black jacket was Walton, but he was “not one hundred percent sure.”
Investigators were able to establish Walton’s identity after learning he hired a suite at the Hamilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., from January 5 to January 7, 2021.
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The hotel was one of a few frenzied hotspots for supporters of former President Donald Trump during the 2020 election certification process, and in the aftermath of the Capitol attack, its owner told The Washington Post that he had faced some of the worst challenges of his professional career in 25 years while dealing with guests there, including guests who challenged police officers on the street in an “utterly deplorable” manner. His crew, he stated, was on high alert for anything that could be a weapons case.
As for Walton, there is no proof that he was equipped with anything other than the barricades and “long white pole” used against officers defending lawmakers and the Capitol during the electoral certification disruption.
Walton’s attorney did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Wednesday.