WASHINGTON – A West Virginia man charged in the assault of a U.S. Capitol police officer during the January 6 insurrection can be released on bond while he awaits trial.
A U.S. District Judge was wrong in assessing the threat level posed by George Tanios, an August 9 appellate court ruling said.
Tanios, who ran a restaurant in Morgantown, had been ordered to be kept in prison while awaiting trial on several charges, including assault on a federal officer with a dangerous weapon.
But a panel of three U.S. District Court of Appeals judges for the D.C. Circuit said the district judge’s order should be reversed. Conditions for Tanios’ release would include home detention and electronic monitoring.
“The record reflects that Tanios has no past felony convictions, no ties to any extremist organizations, and no post-January 6 criminal behavior that would otherwise show him to pose a danger to the community within the meaning of the Bail Reform Act,” the order states.
Tanios’ trial might not happen until next year based on the busy D.C. Circuit Court docket, so he had asked to be released while awaiting trial.
Tanios and friend Julian Khater of New Jersey are accused of assaulting U.S. Capitol police officers with pepper spray. One of the officers was Brian Sicknick died following the January 6 incident, but a medical examiner later ruled chemical spray was not the direct cause of death. It was ruled Sicknick suffered a stroke and died of natural causes.
“Tanios is not dangerous and he did not commit violent acts at the Capitol on January 6,” his lawyers wrote in an appeal brief. “Specifically, Tanios did not aid and abet his co-defendant, Julian Khater.”
Tanios and Khater are charged with nine counts including assaulting three officers with a deadly weapon. The charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Tanios has pleaded not guilty.
Other West Virginians facing federal charges of entering the Capitol on January 6 are former Parkersburg Councilman Eric Barber, former Wayne County state Delegate Derrick Evans and college senior Gracyn Courtright of Hurricane.
Evans, who resigned from the House of Delegates after being charged before even serving a day as a lawmaker, was scheduled to have a status hearing August 10, but it was delayed as attorneys work on a possible plea agreement.