A federal judge ordered that “Cowboys for Trump” founder Couy Griffin be removed from his position as Otero County commissioner on Tuesday over his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
New Mexico District Court Judge Francis J. Mathew found that Griffin had engaged in insurrection during the Jan. 6 riot and was constitutionally disqualified from holding federal or state office, including his current position.
“This is a historic win for accountability for the January 6th insurrection and the efforts to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power in the United States,” said Noah Bookbinder, the president of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), in a press release.
The watchdog group and several law firms filed lawsuits against Griffin in March, after he was found guilty of illegally entering the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021.
The group alleged — and Mathew agreed — that Griffin violated Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which bars elected officials from “engaging in insurrection or rebellion.”
Even though Griffin did not personally engage in violence, Mathew said Griffin’s decision to join the mob on Jan. 6 and trespass on restricted grounds constituted insurrection. The judge also said Griffin “normalized and incited violence” before, during and after Jan. 6.
Mathew’s decision represents the first time since 1869 that a court has disqualified an elected official over the insurrection rule, according to CREW.
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New Mexico official ordered removed from office over Jan. 6 participation https://t.co/iOL30f6NS3 pic.twitter.com/kWpoeLpryY
— The Hill (@thehill) September 6, 2022
BREAKING: A New Mexico judge has ordered Couy Griffin removed from office as a county commissioner over his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Judge Francis Matthew rules Griffin is barred from public office under the 14th Amendment's disqualification clause. pic.twitter.com/uCfqjVcYqC
— Jordan Fischer (@JordanOnRecord) September 6, 2022
Cowboys fro Trump founder Couy Griffin has been ordered removed from office https://t.co/glAMvd2dOM
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) September 6, 2022
Wish we in PA could do the same. Doing so would finish off Doug Mastriano’s campaign for governor. Mastriano was in DC on January 6 and is said to have chartered buses for the mob from PA., among other things.
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