‘QAnon Shaman’ ordered to stay in jail while awaiting trial after appearing on ‘60 Minutes Plus’
Jacob Chansley, also known as the so-called "QAnon Shaman"
WASHINGTON - The self-described "QAnon Shaman," who found himself in headlines all across the nation after wearing a bearskin, horned headdress and face paint on Jan. 6, has been denied a pretrial release.
According to court documents filed on Mar. 8, a Washington, D.C. judge denied Jacob Chansley’s request for release ahead of his trial. Chansley is charged with civil disorder and obstructing an official proceeding, both of which are felonies, in connection with the deadly riot at the US Capitol.
Chansley is also charged with four misdemeanors including entering and remaining in a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.
Prosecutors argued in a new filing Monday that Chansley is a danger to the community, alleging he held a speared weapon as he confronted officers inside the Capitol, wrote a threatening note to then-Vice President Mike Pence and spoke about ridding the government of traitors.
Prosecutes say that "upon consideration of the parties," the court finds that "no condition or combination of conditions of release will reasonably assure defendant's appearance as required or the safety of others and the community."
The decision comes after Chansley was interviewed on "60 Minutes Plus" which first aired on "CBS This Morning" on Mar. 4, one day before a D.C. judge heard arguments over Chansley’s potential pre-trial release.
In the interview, Chansley said his actions were not an attack on the country to "60 Minutes Plus" correspondent Laurie Segall.
He also claimed he remained peaceful after officers "waved" him into the Capitol building.
"My actions were not an attack on this country. That is incorrect. That is inaccurate entirely," he said, describing instead how he prayed, sang songs inside the building and prevented theft and vandalism.
"I sang a song and that’s a part of Shamanism. It’s about creating positive vibrations in a sacred chamber," Chansley said. "I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space, the Senate. I actually stopped someone from stealing muffins out of the break room. I also said a prayer in that sacred chamber because it was my intention to bring divinity, to bring God back into the Senate."
Chansley also made a distinction that although he regrets entering the Capitol, he does not regret supporting former President Donald Trump - but said he was disappointed to have not received a presidential pardon during Trump's last days in office.
"I developed a lot of sympathy for Donald Trump because it seemed like the media was picking on him," Chansley said. "It seemed like the establishment was going after him unnecessarily or unfairly and I had been a victim of that all of my life whether it be at school or at home, so in many ways I identified with many of the negative things he was going through."
"I honestly believed and still believe that he cares about the Constitution," Chansley continued, referring to Trump. "That he cares about the American people. And that’s also why it wounded me so deeply and disappointed me so greatly that I and others did not get a pardon."
"I regret entering that building. I regret entering that building with every fiber of my being," he added.
"But you don’t regret the loyalty to Donald Trump?" Segall asked. Chansley responded flatly, "No."
FOX News contributed to this report.