WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Michigan man has been arrested and charged with assaulting law enforcement officers during the January 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol, an event that disrupted the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.
Nathan Thornsberry, 42, of North Branch, Michigan, was taken into custody today by the FBI in Davison, Michigan. He faces several charges, including a felony offense of obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers. Additionally, Thornsberry is charged with four misdemeanors: entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, committing an act of physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, and disorderly or disruptive conduct in a Capitol building or grounds.
According to court documents, Thornsberry was identified among a group of rioters on the Lower West Terrace of the U.S. Capitol grounds on January 6. Starting at approximately 2:06 p.m. EST, Thornsberry was captured on police body-worn camera footage pushing metal bike-rack barriers against law enforcement officers as part of the crowd’s efforts to breach the police line.
Thornsberry allegedly resisted officers from the Metropolitan Police Department and the United States Capitol Police near the media tower on the Lower West Plaza. He was seen repeatedly pushing himself backward against a metal bike rack barricade that officers were attempting to control. Despite officers’ efforts to push the crowd back, Thornsberry and others resisted, with Thornsberry audibly challenging the officers by yelling, “Bring It!” multiple times.
Following his arrest, Thornsberry made his initial court appearance in the Eastern District of Michigan. The case will be prosecuted in the District of Columbia, where the charges were filed.