(The Guardian) Official disqualified for part in January 6 insurrection
A New Mexico state district court judge has disqualified county commissioner and Cowboys for Trump cofounder Couy Griffin from holding public office for engaging in insurrection at the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, the Associated Press reports.
State district court judge Francis Mathew issued a ruling today that permanently prohibits Griffin from holding or seeking local or federal office.
Griffin was previously convicted in federal court of a misdemeanor for entering Capitol grounds on January 6, without going inside the building. He was sentenced to 14 days and given credit for time served.
The new ruling immediately removes Griffin from his position as a commissioner in Otero County in southern New Mexico. -- Mr Griffin aided the insurrection even though he did not personally engage in violence. By joining the mob and trespassing on restricted Capitol grounds, Mr Griffin contributed to delaying Congress’s election-certification proceedings,” Mathew wrote.
Griffin was notified of his removal from office by Otero County staff, who prevented him from accessing his work computer and office space at a county building in Alamogordo.
Griffin, who served as his own legal counsel at a two-day bench trial in August, called the ruling a “total disgrace” that disenfranchises his constituents in Otero county.
The ruling arrives amid a flurry of similar lawsuits around the country seeking to punish politicians who took part in January 6 under provisions of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, which holds that anyone who has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution can be barred from office for engaging in insurrection or rebellion.
The lawsuit against Griffin was brought by three plaintiffs in New Mexico with support from the Washington-based Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The NAACP and progressive watchdog group Common Cause filed briefs in support of Griffin’s removal.
Griffin, a Republican, forged a group of rodeo acquaintances in 2019 into the promotional group called Cowboys for Trump.
