RI Man Charged In Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol Breach Reaches Plea Deal

NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI — A North Kingstown man charged in connection to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, has reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors, according to court documents.

According to court documents filed in U.S. District Court in Washington D.C. on Friday and obtained by WPRI 12, the defense attorney for Bernard Joseph Sirr, 47, and federal prosecutors filed a "joint motion for a change of plea hearing." The court hearing was scheduled for Jan. 27, in Washington D.C.

"The parties have resolved this matter and correspondingly request a change of plea hearing at the court’s convenience," lawyers wrote in the motion obtained by WPRI 12.

Details on if any charges will be dropped in the plea deal were not released.

Sir was arrested in June 2022, and charged with civil disorder, a felony, and related misdemeanor charges. According to court documents, Sirr was among the rioters who illegally entered the Capitol grounds. He joined a line of rioters who were engaged in a confrontation with Capitol Police officers in the tunnel area of the Lower West Terrace, prosecutors said.

At 3:08 p.m., video showed Sirr entering the tunnel. During a video taken inside the tunnel, Sirr is at the front of the police line pushing against rioters who are assaulting officers, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said Sirr pushed against the police line with his hand pressed against a police shield.

He also participated in a confrontation in which a group of rioters chanted "Heave! Ho!" in unison as they moved together as a team against the officer, according to the Department of Justice.

Prosecutors said Sirr left the tunnel around 3:14 p.m. About an hour later, he reappeared at the Lower West Terrace doorway, pushing other rioters who were pushing against police officers, authorities said. Sirr ultimately was ejected from the tunnel area.