Shawndale and Donald Chilcoat are pictured inside the Senate chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021. The Celina couple faces charges for their alleged role in the Jan. 6 attack, with new charges recently filed.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Mercer County residents Shawndale and Donald Chilcoat have new charges related to their alleged actions during the Jan. 6, 2021 uprising at the United States Capitol and reportedly are seeking new legal counsel to help defend them against those federal counts.
The Chilcoats were arrested Aug. 11, 2022, in connection with their actions during the Jan. 6 insurrection that took place at the Capitol, where thousands of people gathered that day as the U.S. Congress was to formally certify the results of the 2020 presidential election.
According to the FBI, the Chilcoats were among rally participants who illegally entered the Capitol building to protest the election results. They were charged in federal court with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, entering and remaining in the gallery of Congress, disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, demonstrating or picketing in any Capitol building and obstructing or impeding any official proceeding.
A superseding indictment was handed down earlier this month against the couple, charging them with obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; entering and remaining of the floor of Congress; disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and in any of the Capitol buildings; and failure to appear.
Shawndale Chilcoat also informed the court last week of her intent to obtain new legal counsel. She and her husband have filed a motion with the court seeking a change in venue for trial. The Chilcoats contend that venue should be transferred to Ohio based on the size and characteristics of the jury pool in the District of Columbia, the volume and nature of information included in media coverage and the timing of the proceedings.
Federal attorneys said in response that the motion “parrots a well-trod argument that, despite sporting a population of 700,000, a change of venue is warranted because a portion of D.C. residents has been either affected by the events of January 6, 2021, or exposed to prejudicial media reporting — and not enough time has passed to diminish any of these prejudicial effects. As has been repeatedly recognized, none of these arguments have merit.”
