According to a Tuesday report, a defendant from the January 6 protest at the Capitol who is being held in a Virginia jail is being denied medical care, and the special diet he needs due to an autoimmune disease.
According to his attorney Joseph McBride, January 6 participant Christopher Quaglin, charged with assaulting police officers, has lost 20 pounds at Northern Neck Regional Jail.
He has Celiac disease, an autoimmune condition that bars him from eating gluten.
McBride told Newsmax’s Greg Kelly that Quaglin was moved to the Virginia facility on December 21, marking the sixth time that he has been moved while being held in pretrial detention.
“He has been retaliated against,” McBride said. “He is purposely being starved. He is being denied medical treatment. This was recognized this week by multiple members of Congress. Just today from the office of Congressman Clay Higgins – Clay Higgins and Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and 12 other signees sent a letter to the top dog in the bureau of prisons demanding answers about Christopher Quaglin and demanding answers about other people who have been mistreated.”
McBride said Quaglin is “in dire need of medical help” and that he is “at risk of dying right now.” Accusing the federal government of moving him around from jail to jail “like a chess piece,” McBride also said Quaglin is in solitary confinement and has COVID-19.
“In the United States of America, we do not punish pre-trial detainees,” McBride said. “Not only has he been punished, he’s been tortured, and it has to stop now.”
Quaglin has no prior criminal record.
The Northern Neck Regional Jail did not return a comment request Tuesday.
Reports of abuse of January 6 detainees in pre-trial detention have been plentiful.
Their jailers are accused of feeding them inedible food, locking them down for 23 hours each day, physical and mental abuse, denying detainees access to religious services, and in some cases, denying them access to attorneys. Others have been dissuaded from seeing attorneys by being forced into COVID-19 quarantine for 14 days after each attorney visit, under the guise of keeping inmates healthy.
The anniversary of the mostly peaceful protest is Thursday.
Both President Joe Biden and former President Donald J. Trump are expected to address the nation that day.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Joseph McBride” by The McBride Law Firm, PLLC. Background Photo “January 6” by Tyler Merbler. CC BY 2.0.
