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Tennessee man pleads guilty to misdemeanor charge, admits entering the U.S. Capitol during riot

Bryan Wayne Ivey admitted that he entered the U.S. Capitol through a window broken by a rioter. He said he spent about 35 minutes in the building.

WASHINGTON D.C., DC — A Crossville man who admitted he entered the U.S. Capitol during a January 6 riot pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge on Tuesday.

Bryan Wayne Ivey, 28, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to one count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building, a misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of six months in prison and a $500 fine. He originally faced additional charges of unlawfully entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct in a restricted building and disorderly conduct in the Capitol.

In a Statement of Offense filed by Ivey's attorney, he admitted that he traveled to DC to attend the "Stop the Steal" rally. He said he didn't attend the rally because it was too crowded and joined the large crowd at the U.S. Capitol instead.

He said that after the police line and metal barricades were breached, he walked towards the Senate Wing Door where he saw another rioter break a window with a riot shield.

He admitted he entered the Capitol, according to the document, and was aware that he was not authorized to be there. He said he "stood at the door and waved additional rioters into the Capitol building." 

He admitted to spending about 35 minutes inside the building, mostly in the Rotunda, where he recorded multiple videos on his cell phone that he later deleted. 

The Department of Justice said Ivey can be seen in public footage and surveillance video entering the Capitol through the window smashed in by Proud Boy Dominic Pezzola.

 

Ivey appeared virtually before U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper to enter a plea of guilty on the parading count. During a brief hearing, Ivey said he understood the implications of the plea deal and that no one had coerced him into it. Ivey’s attorney and Justice Department lawyers said they had not reached a sentencing agreement, so Cooper will decide what, if any, prison time Ivey serves.

Ivey is the latest Capitol riot defendant to enter a plea in the case. Last week, Joshua and Jessica Bustle, a husband and wife from Virginia, both pleaded guilty to the same parading count as Ivey. On Wednesday, an Indiana grandmother of five, Anna Morgan-Lloyd, is expected to plead guilty and become the first defendant in the Capitol riot case to actually be sentenced. In a sentencing document filed with the court, the DOJ says it will recommend she serve three years of probation and pay a $500 fine.

Ivey is scheduled to appear in court again for his sentencing on September 28 at 11 a.m. He is one of at least eight Tennesseans facing charges tied to the Jan. 6 riots. 

He was arrested after a "concerned citizen" told investigators that Ivey told them he'd been part of the Capitol riot.

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