During the dozens of jury trial trials of defendants arrested after the January 6, 2021 protests at the nation's capitol, Alabama attorney Melissa Isaak won the first "not guilty" jury verdict. Her client Mathew Purdy was found not guilty on his most serious charge and only convicted of the less serious.
Now, Purdy is a completely free man, thanks to the pardons issued by President Donald Trump.
Isaak and Purdy will appear nationally on Newsmax on Sunday at 10:20 a.m. and be interviewed by Jon Glasgow.
Purdy had been charged with the Class A misdemeanor of "knowingly entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds without lawful authority" in the January 6, 2021, "Stop the Steal" protest in Washington, D.C., in which thousands of citizens protested against the questionable procedures of the 2020 presidential election.
The lesser charges on which Purdy was convicted are now null following Trump's pardon.
Here is Isaak's explanation of what happened:
This is Matthew. Matthew attended the ‘Stop the Steal Rally’ in Washington D.C. on January 6, 2021.
Matthew’s case was assigned to Judge Royce Lamberth. There have been several articles referencing Lambreth’s statements. We filed for a recusal largely based upon his statements, but it was denied.
Long story short, in June of this year we went in front of a DC jury. It was clear during selection that their politics did not match ours. But after the trial, the jury found him innocent of the “1752” charges. This charge is knowingly entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and disorderly conduct. He was there. He didn’t harm anyone. He didn’t destroy anything, he didn’t even yell at anyone. But the jury did find him guilty of class B misdemeanors. Jail time is largely unheard of for class B misdemeanors.
When the jury returned the verdict, the judge did not look happy. In fact, we can’t find where a defendant was ever acquitted of that charge, ever, in his courtroom. It appears we were (and are) the only ones to ever get a not guilty on this charge.
Ironically, I didn’t practice criminal law. I wasn’t a J6 lawyer, but when the need arose, I became one and am in the ranks of J6 lawyers who have gotten acquittals. And it’s only a few.
At sentencing, Matthew was given jail time. Far less than his contemporaries, but unfair nonetheless. How Hunter Biden gets a 10-year pardon and the J6ers, most who have never been in trouble and were “just there” face jail time is unconscionable.
Isaak had said that she hoped and believed Trump would pardon the January 6 defendants when he re-took office, which would, of course, include her own client. That is exactly what happened and will be the subject of the Newsmax interview.
"We know of 26 federal assets who had been seeded into the protest. We suspect there may have been as many as 80. They created a ritual and now the Patriots pay the price," she said.
Isaak, representing only men, operates a domestic relations law practice in Montgomery and Enterprise. She is opening in Luverne. Her email address is even melissa@protectingmen.com; in the Purdy case, she was protecting a man, but it was protection from political weaponization by the Biden Department of Justice. They won.
Sometimes, the good guys win, but it may take a while. And they must fight.
Jim' Zig' Zeigler writes about Alabama's people, places, events, groups and prominent deaths. He is a former Alabama Public Service Commissioner and State Auditor. You can reach him for comments at ZeiglerElderCare@yahoo.com.
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