By Miriam Raftery
U. S. Department of Justice photo: Erik Herrera in the Senate Congressman’s Office
August 29, 2022 (El Cajon) – Erik Herrera, 34, of El Cajon was convicted of felony and misdemeanor for his moves in the January 6, 2021 Capitol Uprising. News of his arrest and trial came as a surprise to the editor, who had hired Herrera for freelance photography a few months earlier.
I do not tolerate any effort by anyone to participate in an attack on our nation’s Capitol, to obstruct vote counting, or to attack our American democracy.
I have no main points from Herrera’s participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, events on Capitol Hill, other than what’s in government documents and the defense team’s statement that he was there as a photographer. dressed in a fuel mask and holding internal documents from the Senate congressman’s office.
The U. S. Department of Justice The US said in a press release: “Their movements and the movements of others disrupted a joint consultation of the US Congress. A U. S. election convened to determine electoral votes similar to the presidential election. “
In a trial before Chief Justice Beryl A. Howell of the U. S. District Court In the U. S. Department of Homeland Security for the District of Columbia, Herrera was convicted by a jury on August 19, 2022 of obstruction of due process for fraudster and 4 felonies, in addition to entering and staying in a limited or heavy construction, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a Capitol construction, and a parade, demonstration, or picket at a Capitol construction.
The U. S. Attorney’s Office The U. S. Attorney General’s office in the prosecution fee argued that Herrera was among the rioters who illegally entered the Capitol through the Senate chimney door and the Senate wing door.
The defense argued that Herrera was a photographer with a press card, however, Herrera admitted on social media on January 7, 2021 that the press card he was wearing had not been issued through any news organization. According to the Justice Department, he wrote, “I don’t have a monopoly on press passes. They’re on Amazon for around $8. . .
Herrera posted several independent images through East County Magazine in 2020, adding photographs of a wildfire, local protests for and against Trump, Election Day photographs and vote counting in a Santee recount of a race for city council.
I won a federal subpoena to testify about his history of paid photography jobs for ECM in 2020 for several items, but warned at the last minute that he would not have to appear after offering a copy of his contract for local photography assignments. .
As a network news site, East County Magazine offers opportunities for many freelance photographers and journalists.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, my contact with Herrera is virtual, not in person. Thinking about the question of whether I would possibly have missed the red flags, I don’t remember. He presented us with stories covering both sides of the political aisle and I didn’t see any bias in his politics age from local events.
He knew nothing of his vacation in Washington, D. C. , nor did he attempt to sell photographs taken in the Capitol gap to our organization afterward.
Legitimate hounds are rarely located covering turbulent news, as our organization did with local protests and an insurrection in 2020. However, any freelance journalist or photographer will have to remain an impartial observer reporting sometimes in a professional manner, without engaging in non-professional or participatory actions. Journalists deserve to try to download valid press passes issued through a law enforcement signature or an identity document or project letter from an original media outlet, not a fake press pass ordered online.
I looked at Erik Herrera’s blog site in https://sadtographer. myportfolio. com/. He described their development alongside refugees, immigrants, other people of other races, religions and multicultural extremes. In a statement from the artist, he wrote: “I aspire to show that life is tied to everything. Not everyone sees and not all of us see the same light that shapes our experiences, our true selves. I leave a percentage in each photo, but I often hide who I am in the paintings I produce.
In his blog, he addresses the plight of migrants in Mexico and in U. S. border communities. In the U. S. , for example, interviewing mothers who have fled violence in Honduras. “I know that God cares for all his angels and is with each one of us,” Herrera said, Herrera wrote. He also covered protests against the death of Alfred Olango, a black immigrant killed by an El Cajon police officer, occasions for Chicano rights, and a pilgrimage to heal and say goodbye to his dying grandfather in Mexico.
In late 2020, he covered a “night squad” organized by the Proud Boys in Washington D. C. , as well as a March for Trump, his latest blog post.
Much of what he covered contrasts with a typical profile of a rebel or supporter of Donald Trump, known for his anti-immigrant and anti-Mexican rhetoric. However, Herrera reportedly expressed doubts about the final results of the 2020 election on social media. .
I was saddened to learn that, according to prosecutors, this talented young photographer was caught up in the fray fostered by the former president’s false accusations about a stolen election, accusations denied by more than 60 judges who reviewed the effects of elections in several states. several judges Trump had appointed.
This misjudgment can cost Herrera years in federal prison. How many other lives have been ruined or derailed by those same false claims?
Herrera’s rate of obstructing crime is punishable by a legal maximum of 20 years in imaginable criminal and monetary penalties. The 4 crimes combined are punishable by up to 3 years in imaginable criminal and monetary penalties. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 10. , 2022. Although you can face up to 23 years overall behind bars, most convicts have won sentences ranging from a few months to several years.
In the 19 months since the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Uprising, more than 860 people have been arrested in nearly 50 states for rape-related offenses, adding more than 260 charged with assault or obstruction of law enforcement.
FBI ticket offices in San Diego and Washington investigated the case with the U. S. Capitol Police. The U. S. Department of Homeland Security, the Secret Service and other agencies.
The Department of Justice encourages with the recommendation to call 1-800-CALL-FBI or make a stop at tips. fbi. gov.
In San Diego County, all police, sheriff’s and fire departments issue press passes from the San Diego Police Department.
Some media outlets factor their own identifiers to show that a journalist is affiliated with their media outlet, but those are necessarily revered by law enforcement.
A fake press pass ordered online would not be considered valid through any law enforcement agency, so it is useless.
We inspire all freelancers who report police cases, fires, or other conditions that may require press passes or background checks (such as covering applicants with safety details) to apply for an SDPD press pass. SDPD conducts a background check and will not consider a press card to the convicted of a felony or safe misdemeanors.
We will provide our own media identification as needed for hounds doing other types of work, who may only want to show what constitutes us when they cover festivals or other reports, as those types of policy do not make a photographer or photographer eligible for an SDPD. press pass.
Erik Herrera did NOT have an ECM press ID or, to my knowledge, an SDPD press card.
To my knowledge, there is no way to save you from selling fake press passes online. If someone shows you a press card or an ID card and asks you to interview them, you can call the media in case of doubt to verify the authenticity of the journalist or photographer.