FL Man Spent 56 Minutes In U.S. Capitol During Jan. 6 Riot: U.S. DOJ

PALM HARBOR, FL — A Palm Harbor man faces charges related to the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol building by a mob intent on disrupting a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was counting the electoral votes in the 2020 presidential election.

Michael Hennessey, 38, was arrested Wednesday in Florida and charged with civil disorder, a felony, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.

He also faces several misdemeanor counts, including entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a Capitol building or grounds, and parading, picketing, or demonstrating in a Capitol building.

Hennessey traveled from Florida to Washington, D.C., to attend the “Stop the Steal” rally at the Ellipse on Jan. 6, 2021.

When the rally ended, he joined a crowd as they walked to the Capitol and entered the Capitol grounds via the West Plaza, the DOJ said. An open-source video shows him heading toward the building using the northwest stairs.

Hennessey was among the first group of rioters to climb the concrete stairs from the West Plaza to the building’s Upper West Terrace as the crowd overwhelmed police lines, forcing law enforcement to retreat.

He entered the Capitol using the Senate Wing Door at 2:15 p.m., about two minutes after the first breach of the building, which happened at that same entrance, the DOJ said.

Once inside, Hennessey joined the mob in chanting “Our House” and briefly walked toward the Senate Carriage Door. He then turned around and walked back by the Senate Wing Door toward the Crypt.

Before reaching the Crypt, he entered a room with windows to the Upper West Terrace and seemed to record videos and take photos in that room.

Once inside the Crypt, Hennessey went to the front of a crowd facing off against Capitol police officers who were trying to protect the area, the DOJ said.

Working with the rest of the mob, he pushed up against police officers until the crowd eventually overpowered the police line around 2:25 p.m.

The mob wandered throughout the Capitol building. Hennessey is accused of entering the office of the House Majority Leader and the Rotunda.

As the rioters moved through the Capitol, Hennessey was often seen at the forefront of the mob, the DOJ said. The group pushed past police again and moved toward the Senate Chamber.

Police were eventually able to stop the mob from moving forward just outside the Old Senate Chamber. At this point, Hennessey returned to the Rotunda and joined a different mob that pushed against officers, causing one to fall down a set of stairs.

Just after 3 p.m., police regained control of this doorway and tried to gain control of the Rotunda. Despite instructions from the police, Hennessey stayed in the Rotunda, the DOJ said.

Police formed a line across the center of the room and moved through it, forcing rioters toward the exit. Hennessey left the Rotunda around this time and exited the Capitol building through the East Rotunda Doors.

In total, he spent about 56 minutes inside the building, the DOJ said.

Once outside, Hennessey remained on the restricted Capitol grounds, joining other rioters on the East Plaza, where he again positioned himself directly in front of a line of police officers trying to protect the building.

He was later seen joining a crowd gathered around video cameras and other recording equipment abandoned by reporters who ran off after being threatened and assaulted by other members of the mob, the DOJ said.