MI Gov Candidate Pleads Not Guilty To Riot Charges

Lansing’s NBC News affiliate reports:

Ryan Kelley pleaded not guilty on all four misdemeanor charges Thursday during his arraignment that took place via video call. A criminal complaint filed by the FBI alleges Kelley climbed onto an “architectural feature” of the Capitol and waved other rioters to continue forward.

The FBI also says Kelley supported a rioter who pulled a metal barricade onto scaffolding and that he took photos of blood on Capitol grounds. Court documents dated June 22 say he is accused of destroying a tarp covering scaffolding on the Capitol.

Kelley’s campaign has painted the charges against him as political persecution orchestrated by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel though the charges were filed against him at the federal level.

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