Public January 6 profile · ready to claim
James Wayne Brooks
Pardoned January 6 defendant
Documented editorial-use imageJames Wayne Brooks served in the United States military. He is a Johnson City man out of Northeast Tennessee, Tri-Cities country, up where the mountains start. He wore the uniform. Then he did something almost nobody in this whole archive did. He walked into a local newsroom and told on himself. WJHL in the Tri-Cities ran the exclusive. WATE in Knoxville ran it too. James Wayne Brooks sat down with reporters in his own community, before the case was resolved, and said plainly that he had been misled. He named QAnon. He did not hide behind a lawyer's statement. He did not wait for a verdict to have a conscience. That is a hard thing to do in a small town where everybody reads the same news. WHAT THE RECORD SHOWS FACT: James Wayne Brooks served in the U.S. military, per Law and Crime. FACT: He is from Johnson City, Tennessee, per WJHL, WATE, and WMOT, which reported him as the 18th Tennessean arrested in connection with January 6. FACT: A complaint was filed January 3, 2022. He was arrested January 5, 2022. FACT: A superseding information was filed March 10, 2022. FACT: He pleaded guilty August 4, 2022, per the DOJ record and WJHL. FACT: He was sentenced November 3, 2022 to 12 months of probation, 60 hours of community service, and $500 restitution. No prison. FACT: On January 20, 2025, President Trump granted clemency covering the January 6 prosecutions. THEIR ACCOUNT: James Wayne Brooks told Tri-Cities media he was misled by online conspiracy content and went to Washington believing something that was not true. THE LEGAL FIGHT Complaint to sentence took ten months. He took a plea. The court gave him probation and community service. The government did not seek and the court did not impose a day in prison. WHAT THIS DOES NOT PROVE: Nothing here establishes any fact beyond the charge filed and the plea the court accepted. WHAT IT DOES PROVE: A Tennessee veteran said out loud, in his own voice, in his own town, that he was lied to. He did not need a pardon to say it. He said it first. THE CASE RECORD Case 1:22-cr-18, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Initially filed as 1:22-mj-00001. Complaint 1/3/22. Arrested 1/5/22. Superseding information 3/10/22. Pleaded guilty 8/4/22. Sentenced 11/3/22. DOJ page: https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/defendants/brooks-james-w This profile is unclaimed. If this is you, or your family, claiming it is free, forever.
The case file
On the record
- Case number
- 1:22-cr-18
- Court
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- Disposition
- Initially filed as 1:22-mj-00001 Complaint Filed 1/3/22 Arrested 1/5/22 Superseding Information filed 3/10/22 Pleaded guilty 8/4/22 Sentenced 11/3/22 to 12 months of probation, 60 hours community service, $500 restitution.
- Arrested
- January 5, 2022
- Plea
- August 4, 2022
- Sentenced
- November 3, 2022
Sentence
12 months of probation, 60 hours community service, $500 restitution
Press & news
- https://lawandcrime.com/u-s-capitol-siege/man-who-served-in-u-s-military-praised-ashli-babbitt-online-now-faces-charges-for-storming-the-capitol-on-jan-6/ →
- https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/defendants/brooks-james-w →
- https://www.wate.com/news/johnson-city-man-charged-in-jan-6-capitol-riots-says-he-was-misled-by-qanon/ →
- https://www.wjhl.com/news/crime/johnson-city-man-arrested-for-jan-6-capitol-riots-enters-plea-deal/ →
- https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/exclusive-johnson-city-man-charged-in-jan-6-riots-says-he-was-misled-by-qanon/ →
- https://www.wmot.org/news/2022-01-17/18th-tennessean-arrested-in-connection-with-the-jan-6-2021-riot-at-the-u-s-capitol →
Public knowledge · no paywall
This profile is free for anyone to read.
Sign-in is only required to claim ownership, manage a claimed profile, or suggest a factual correction. Reading and sharing the public record never requires an account.
A free account is required for either action so submissions remain tied to a real person and can be reviewed.
Tap how this hits you — no signup, everyone sees the count
Connection to United States v. Nichols
James Wayne Brooks 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
No scans linked yet
No scans linked to this entry yet. Curating is ongoing — check back.