Paul Russell Johnson

Paul Russell Johnson, 38, of Lanexa, Virginia, who carried a Trump "Rambo" flag, toppled a police barricade alongside co-defendant Stephen Chase Randolph during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, causing an officer to fall backward and suffer a concussion, then pushed more barricades to the ground so the mob could advance. He pleaded not guilty to all charges; following a bench trial, Judge Jia M. Cobb found him guilty on 2/2/2024 of five charges, including civil disorder and assaulting a different officer, while acquitting him of assaulting Officer Caroline Edwards, and the court later dismissed his obstruction conviction. He was sentenced on 9/19/2024 to five years of probation, including intermittent weekend confinement for the first year and two years of home confinement, a $25,000 fine, and $2,000 in restitution.