PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – A Battle Ground man accused of breaking into the U.S. Capitol building with other rioters on Jan. 6, 2021, pleaded guilty Monday to one of the counts he was facing.
The other three crimes Jeffrey Grace, 64, was charged with will be dropped as part of the plea agreement. He attended his hearing virtually.
After reassuring the judge he understood what rights he has if he pleads guilty, federal prosecutor Mona Sedky read a record of actions she said Grace took on Jan. 6, 2021, that the government will be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt.
According to Sedky’s statement, Jeffrey Grace and his son Jeremy Grace traveled from Battle Ground, Wash. to Washington D.C. on Jan. 4 2021 to attend the rally for President Donald Trump.
At around the time the rally ended on Jan. 6, 2021, Sedky said Jeffrey and Jeremy Grace walked across the U.S. Capitol grounds and entered the Capitol building at 2:23 p.m.
“They were among the first wave of individuals to enter the building. Once inside, they walked together to the rotunda. They entered the rotunda at approximately 2:25 p.m. from the north entrance and remained inside the rotunda for approximately 5 minutes,” Sedky said.
Jeffrey and Jeremy Grace left the rotunda at approximately 2:30 p.m. and left the building through a broken window at approximately 2:31 p.m., Sedky said.
The prosecutor said Jeremy Grace had taken a selfie-style video inside the rotunda that he later deleted.
“In [the video] Grace’s son stated, ‘Just made it into the Capitol here. Oh yeah! Oh yeah!’ Grace stated, ‘It gets no better than this.’ Grace’s son then stated, ‘Freedom.’ Grace replied, ‘God bless America,’” Sedky said, describing the video.
After Sedky finished recounting Jeffrey Grace’s actions on Jan. 6, Grace told the judge that what she had described was true.
In the plea agreement, prosecutors dropped three of Jeffrey Grace’s charges: disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a capitol building; and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a capitol building.
Jeffrey Grace pleaded guilty to the remaining charge of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds.
The judge told Jeffrey Grace that he predicts he will be sentenced to 0-6 months in custody and could receive 1 year of supervised release in his sentence. Jeffrey Grace will also be required to pay $500 in restitution.
His sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 3, 2023, at 10 a.m. ET.
Jeremy Grace, Jeffrey Grace’s son, has already been sentenced after pleading guilty to the same charge. He was sentenced to 21 days in custody.