Blaze News investigative journalist Steve Baker pleads not guilty to 4 misdemeanor charges over his Jan. 6 reporting

Blaze News investigative journalist Steve Baker on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to the four non-violent misdemeanor charges the Justice Department brought against him in connection with his reporting at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

What's the background?

Baker has been searching for the truth about what went on behind the scenes in relation to January 6 and believes the U.S. government has been targeting him for it.

Well, after receiving instructions from the FBI, Baker on March 1 arrived at the agency's field office in Dallas and turned himself in — after which, he was arrested, handcuffed, and charged.

The charges against him are:

• Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority
• Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds
• Disorderly conduct in a capitol building
• Parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a capitol building

Baker and others have blasted the charges. U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) himself sounded off with an op-ed last month asking, "Where is the outrage over Steve Baker’s prosecution?"

What's more, shortly after Baker's arrest, Blaze Media released never-before-seen video showing Baker's movements in and around the U.S. Capitol on January 6, which appears to stand in stark contrast to the narrative the federal government has been floating about him.

The 47-minute video includes Baker's cellphone camera documentation of what went on inside the Capitol building alongside newly released footage from the Capitol's CCTV cameras that BlazeTV obtained primarily through Loudermilk's efforts. He and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) have made providing access to January 6 videos a priority.

Here's the unfiltered video showing Baker just before he entered the Capitol that day, his movements inside the building, and after he left. Content warning: Language:

Steve Baker Inside the Capitol on January 6youtu.be

Baker discussed his legal saga in a pair of October commentary pieces for Blaze News (here and here), detailing the ins and outs of the federal investigation he's been under following his independent journalistic work on January 6, which took place prior to him joining Blaze News.

What happened at Wednesday's hearing?

Baker told Blaze News that Wednesday's virtual hearing was his first time before the Washington, D.C., federal judge presiding over the case — Christopher R. Cooper — who last week ordered Baker to "comply" with the conditions of his release, although Baker has maintained he's been in compliance all along.

Baker told Blaze News there was "quite a bit of discussion" at the hearing about pretrial restrictions on him, which relate to Cooper's order to comply.

Baker previously told Blaze News that among his restrictions are that he's not allowed to possess a firearm, and he has to report every contact he has with law enforcement to his pretrial services officer. But this presents two problems for Baker: He told Blaze News he carries a gun as a means of self-defense due to online threats he's received, and part of his job with Blaze News is speaking to law enforcement personnel — and doing so confidentially.

An upbeat Baker on Thursday told Blaze News that despite apparent previous glitches in communication between pretrial services officers in D.C. and in his home state of North Carolina — which seem to have contributed to Cooper's order to comply, which Baker saw as unnecessary — the hearing showed him things now appear to be headed in the right direction:

"Frankly, I’m quite surprised and pleased by the cooperative nature the government has shown toward my pretrial release conditions and their willingness to modify language due to my unique circumstances as a working journalist. Unlike all other J6 defendants, I have no travel restrictions — even to D.C. or internationally — and the government is working with my attorneys to modify the language of certain restrictions that would interfere with my ongoing investigations … even those about certain governmental agencies’ corruption.

"I can only conjecture that they do not want to engage in these fights, knowing I will go public with every ruling, and more eyeballs will likely see these wranglings than any other J6 case. Both Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Dreher and Judge Cooper seem very amenable to both parties simply 'working it out' without having to litigate each issue. This has to do with not only my pretrial conditions but also matters of discovery that are normally under the Court’s protective order, to which I may have already had access and permission from Congress to release publicly as a result of my ongoing investigations.

"The most interesting moment in yesterday’s hearing came when my attorney addressed the discovery, protective order issues, and my unique access to all this information through congressional committees. Judge Cooper asked, 'What does Mr. Baker do for a living?' My attorney William Shipley replied, 'He’s a journalist with Blaze Media.' Cooper seemed genuinely surprised to learn that, and I was genuinely surprised that the government had not already informed him of my occupation."

Baker said his next hearing is scheduled for June 3.

What has Baker uncovered so far?

Baker began his investigative reporting for Blaze News last fall. His first Jan. 6 analysis for Blaze News came last October following countless hours in a House subcommittee office looking at frame after frame of January 6 closed-circuit video — and it had him wondering: Did Capitol Police Special Agent David Lazarus perjure himself in the Oath Keepers trial?

Baker's investigative efforts also resulted in two additional analyses, both focusing on Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn: "January 6 and the N-word that wasn't" and "Harry Dunn's account of January 6 does not add up. At all."

In December, Baker alleged that he uncovered major irregularities involving Dunn, the Capitol Police, the press, and U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland).

In January, Baker asserted that newly released U.S. Capitol closed-circuit TV video clips from Jan. 6 show Lazarus gave false testimony in the Oath Keepers trial.

Proof of Perjury | The Truth About January 6youtu.be

Also in January, Baker and others were asking what the U.S. government has to hide in regard to the pipe bomb found on Jan. 6 at the Democratic National Committee headquarters. Baker in February wrote another analysis titled "Capitol Police diverted all CCTV cameras away from DNC pipe bomb investigation — except one" and later that month asked why Kamala Harris was at the DNC and not the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Rep. Loudermilk — who chairs the Committee on House Administration Subcommittee on Oversight — last month told Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck the reason the FBI and the Justice Department may be going after Baker over his January 6 coverage is because "he's onto something" the federal government wants kept under wraps.

In addition, GOP House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan last month opened an investigation into the DOJ over its treatment of Baker. In a scathing March 12 letter to Matthew Graves, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jordan outlined "serious concerns" about the DOJ's "selective prosecution" concerning Baker's arrest "as well as the Department's commitments to the First Amendment rights of journalists."

In his letter, Jordan demanded that Graves produce the following no later than 5 p.m. March 26:

• All documents and communications regarding Baker's arrest;
• All documents and communications regarding any investigation, prosecution, and arrest of any other journalist covering Jan. 6;
• All documents and communications related to the DOJ's determination to request pretrial detention of defendants charged in connection with Jan. 6 — plus those who are now or who have been in pretrial detention related to Jan. 6.

Jordan's letter concludes by reminding Graves that the Judiciary Committee has "jurisdiction to oversee" the DOJ regarding matters "related to civil liberties."

Baker on Thursday told Blaze News that according to his contacts on the Judiciary Committee, Jordan's demands have yet to be met.

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