Ex-West Virginia legislator pleads guilty in Jan. 6 case

A former West Virginia state lawmaker who livestreamed the Jan. 6, 2021, rioting at the Capitol pleaded guilty on Friday to a felony charge of civil disorder over his involvement in the uprising.

Derrick Evans, 36, faces up to five years in prison and a potential fine of up to $250,000, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a press release. He will be sentenced on June 22.

Evans was a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, but he was arrested on Jan. 8 of last year and resigned the following day.

Leading up to the events of Jan. 6, when a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol in a failed attempt to overturn certification of the 2020 election, Evans advertised the movement on Facebook and headed to Washington, D.C., in a charter bus, according to DOJ documents.

He approached the east side of the Capitol during the rioting and livestreamed the events before later deleting the video. Wearing a helmet, Evans can be heard saying, “We’re in! Keep it moving, baby!” as the mob surged.

When he made it inside the building, he shouted, “We’re in! Derrick Evans is in the Capitol!”

Evans later said on Facebook he was there “simply there as an independent member of the media to film history.”

After he resigned from the state legislature, he changed his tune.

“I take full responsibility for my actions, and deeply regret any hurt, pain or embarrassment I may have caused my family, friends, constituents and fellow West Virginians,” Evans said in a statement posted by the West Virginia House of Delegates.

More than 775 people have been arrested in nearly all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., in connection to the rioting.