JON SCHAFFER - Legal Team For District Of Columbia Asks Judge To Reject Motion To Dismiss Lawsuit Filed Over ICED EARTH Guitarist's Role In US Capitol Riot

The Republic is reporting that the legal team representing the District of Columbia has asked a federal judge to reject a motion to dismiss a lawsuit against a former Columbus resident who pleaded guilty to storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The attorneys filed a response in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. on Friday, challenging a motion filed earlier this month by former Columbus resident Jon Schaffer that seeks to dismiss the lawsuit.

U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta, who is presiding over the case, had not ruled on the merits of Schaffer’s request as of Tuesday morning.

The lawsuit, filed Dec. 14, 2021, alleges that Schaffer and dozens of other defendants “played a leading role in unleashing a larger mob” and are liable for the damages and costs incurred by the District of Columbia during the Capitol attack, according to a copy of an amended complaint.

D.C. police, also known as the Metropolitan Police Department, dispatched more than 1,000 officers to the U.S. Capitol and the surrounding area to help defend the U.S. Capitol from a violent mob of pro-Trump rioters who sought to prevent the certification of the 2020 presidential election results, court filings state.

Schaffer, who formerly was a musician in the heavy metal band Iced Earth and member of the Oath Keepers, pleaded guilty in April 2021 to, among other things, breaching the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, armed with bear repellent and obstructing an official proceeding.

Read more at The Republic.