MA Teen's Tweets Identify Mother, Relatives As Capitol Protesters

CHARLTON, MA — An 18-year-old Charlton woman identified her mother, aunt and uncle as participants in last January's U.S. Capitol riot in a series of social media posts.

"Hi mom, remember the time you told me I shouldn't go to BLM protests because they could get violent...this you?" Helena Duke said in a Twitter post that included a video clip that appears to show her mother, Therese Duke, 51, of Charlton, harassing a Black woman. In a separate Twitter message, she also named her aunt and uncle, Richard, 58, and Annie Lorenz, 53, both of Milford.

Previously on Patch: What Happened To MA Residents Charged In Jan. 6 Capitol Riot?

The Lorenzes and Therese Duke have not been charged with any crimes related to the Jan. 6 riot. One of the images, which shows Therese Duke after she was punched in the face, was taken the night before the riot. Duke, who was arrested after she went after her assailant on Jan. 5, 2021, told the Boston Herald she had lost her nursing job of 15 years at UMass Memorial Health Care after her daughter's Twitter posts.

Therese Duke, her sister and her alleged assailant were all arrested after the fight.

"I did nothing wrong," Therese Duke told the newspaper. "I was the one who was assaulted."

Helena Duke, who is a student at Oregon State University, told "Good Morning America" the decision to identify her family members was difficult, but "at the same time, if I did nothing I felt that I was as bad as them."

Therese Duke told the Herald no one in her group was involved in the following day's riots and storming of the Capitol.