Public January 6 profile · ready to claim
Christopher M. Kelly
Pardoned January 6 defendant
Documented editorial-use imageChristopher M. Kelly is a New York man whom the government could never place inside the Capitol — and whose case became the very first January 6 prosecution the Justice Department moved to dismiss. The receipts here matter. The only known photos of Christopher Kelly from that day showed him outside the building. There was no cell-site data putting his phone inside, no photo of him within the Capitol, and no direct proof he was among those who breached it. The case was built on a tip that he had posted about the day on Facebook — and it did not hold up. On June 1, 2021, a federal judge granted the government's own motion to dismiss the charges against Christopher Kelly. He had been released on personal recognizance and never spent the case behind bars. Kelly's case stands as an early reminder that a charge is an accusation, not a verdict — and this one was withdrawn by the very prosecutors who brought it. Case record: United States v. Christopher M. Kelly, No. 1:21-mj-128, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Arrested January 20, 2021; initial appearance February 9, 2021; case dismissed June 1, 2021. This profile is unclaimed. If this is you — or your family — claiming it is free, forever.
The case file
On the record
- Case number
- 1:21-mj-128
- Court
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- Disposition
- Arrested 1/20/21. Initial appearance held 2/9/21. Defendant placed on personal recognizance. Case dismissed 6/1/21.
- Arrested
- January 20, 2021
Charges
- Obstruction of an Official Proceeding; Aiding and Abetting; Unlawful Entry to Restricted Building or Grounds; Violent Entry and Disorderly Conduct
Press & news
- https://www.newsweek.com/capitol-rioter-case-believed-first-dropped-doj-1597011 →
- https://www.emptywheel.net/2021/06/01/government-moves-to-dismiss-christopher-kelly-charges/ →
- https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/feds-seek-to-drop-u-s-capitol-riot-case-against-ny-man-due-to-lack-of-evidence/3084584/ →
- https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/defendants/kelly-christopher-m →
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Connection to United States v. Nichols
Christopher M. Kelly appears in the record of United States v. Nichols. The full case — timeline, people, documents — is public and free.
Walk the whole case →Evidence on file
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