Prosecutors say that ex-FBI supervisory special agent Jared Wise, seen here, assaulted police at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (Photos via DOJ)
A former FBI supervisory special agent accused of yelling “kill ’em” at Jan. 6 rioters clashing with police — who he called “the Gestapo” — says he’s being targeted for his political beliefs.
An attorney for Jared Wise, 50, said in a motion filed on Wednesday that Wise is being “selectively prosecuted based on his political beliefs and activities, as can be seen in the different treatment of similarly situated left-wing offenders.” The motion seeks a court order for discovery to learn whether Wise’s political beliefs or activities have played a role in the “unusually harsh charging decisions” in his case.
About his treatment, he cited an example of the cases dismissed against left-wing protesters who clashed with police at a federal courthouse in his home state of Oregon in the summer of 2020.
“By one count, the government dismissed almost half of the 96 cases brought in connection with the violence, including charges of physically assaulting federal officers, in what appear to be policy-driven decisions,” federal public defender Kurt David Hermansen wrote in the motion. “In contrast, Mr. Wise finds himself facing felony assault charges even though he never laid a hand on anyone and never committed an act of violence or vandalism.”
“As for discriminatory intent, the only possible explanation for the disparate treatment of Mr. Wise is his unlawful classification as a right-wing supporter of President Trump and his other activities, such as his tangential but publicized involvement with the controversial right-wing organization, Project Veritas,” the document added.
He said that individual defendants should not be disadvantaged by “the cumulative dangerousness of the unlawful acts” of several thousand protesters.
“The actual dangerousness of Mr. Wise’s conduct (i.e., whether his mere words created an imminent danger for police officers) is precisely at issue in his case,” the document said.
Law enforcement began investigating Wise long after Jan. 6. The FBI surveilled Wise for 15 months in a case that spanned three states, the motion said. The surveillance included monitoring his movements throughout the day, such as walking his dog and taking a trip to a car wash. Agents noted a T-shirt he wore that advertised a Republican politician.
“The surveillance was very intensive, detailing every move law enforcement could, with the log notes even stating when he made a ‘strange detour’ by taking a different route to get coffee,” the motion said.
When arrested, he was subject to a “call out” arrest at his home by a team of armed officers, the document said.
The FBI never sought to interview Wise, as seems to have been done with many Jan. 6 suspects, the document said.
“No explanation has been given for this treatment of Mr. Wise as a suspect, which is striking especially considering his own lengthy and illustrious career as a supervisory agent with the Bureau and his total lack of a criminal record,” the motion said. “Indeed, Mr. Wise believes that he may have been subjected to overly aggressive investigation because of his past as an FBI agent and, later as a whistleblower in a case subsequently investigated by the FBI.”
As Law&Crime previously reported, Wise was indicted on multiple charges, including civil disorder and assaulting police, trespassing, disorderly conduct, uttering loud, threatening, or abusive language, or engaging in disorderly conduct and picketing in a Capitol building. Authorities said he was among the throngs of Donald Trump supporters who poured into the area for the “Stop the Steal” rally that day to disrupt the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral win.
Wise allegedly shouted, “Kill ’em!” when rioters attacked a police line, according to the statement of facts.
In the late afternoon on the Upper West Terrace of the Capitol, Wise allegedly told Metropolitan Police Department officers at around 4:21 p.m. ET: “You guys are disgusting. I’m former — I’m former law enforcement. You’re disgusting. You are the Nazi. You are the Gestapo. You can’t see it.”
Authorities say that Wise then repeatedly shouted to the officers: “Shame on you!”
When he saw rioters knocking down and attacking police, Wise turned in the direction of the violence and shouted: “Yeah, f — them! Yeah, kill ’em!” Wise allegedly continued the chant later: “Kill ’em! Kill ’em! Kill ’em!”
Some months later, on Nov. 30 of that year, the FBI interviewed a manager in Wise’s building, whom authorities say identified the suspect from his driver’s license photograph and a still frame from body camera footage.
In December 2022, authorities conducted surveillance of Wise’s forwarding address in Oregon. Prosecutors said he served as an agent and supervisor with the FBI from 2004 through 2017.
Adam Klasfeld contributed to this report.
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