A judge has ordered the feds to return the spear and horned helmet worn by the man who touted himself as the “QAnon Shaman” when he stormed the Capitol during the Jan. 6 riots.
Federal Judge Royce Lambert ruled Monday that the Department of Justice needed to give back Jacob Chansley’s “unmistakable outfit” after the convict served his 41-month sentence for his part in the deadly 2021 mayhem.
“Mr. Chansley has completed his prison sentence and much of his term of supervised release. Now, he has moved for the return of his property seized and still held by the government, including his spear and helmet,” Lamberth wrote in his decision.
“Since the government has not established that it still needs these items as evidence and has not sought their forfeiture, the Court will grant Mr. Chansley’s motion,” the judge said.
Chansley, 37, of Arizona effectively became the poster boy for the riots after images of him went viral showing off his painted face as he wore what the government called a “horned coyote-tail headdress” and carried “a six-foot pole with an American flag zip tied to the shaft and a metal spearhead fixed to the top.”
He was also seen holding a megaphone as he cheered on the rioters, but it is unclear if the device was also seized or returned.
Chansley was among the first rioters to enter the Capitol building and allegedly cursed out former Vice President Mike Pence when he was hauled off by law-enforcement officials.
The DOJ initially claimed that Chansley’s spear and helmet should remain in federal custody, describing them as items “used to project strength during the assault on the US Capitol.”
But Lambert rejected the argument, saying that because there is so much documented footage of Chansley at the Capitol, “His property is of little utility for an investigation or prosecution.”
Chansley filed his motion in February 2023 to have the items returned to him.
During his sentencing in 2021, Chansley said he regretted his actions and later revealed he no longer supports Donald Trump.
After his early release from prison last year, Chansley, who suffers from mental-health problems, moved into a Residential Reentry Center in Phoenix, Ariz., according to his former lawyer, Albert Watkins.
