School Board Member Who Said ‘Conservatives Don’t Protest’ Is Charged in Capitol Riot Along With Stepson
Richard Slaughter, 40, was elected to the school board of a small Washington town last year. He is accused of storming the Capitol with his stepson.

Brent Stirton/Getty Images
A Washington school board member and his stepson have been charged with participating in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. According to an FBI affidavit, Richard Slaughter, 40, and Paul Gottfried, 20, flew from Washington D.C. to Seattle the day after the riot, allegedly disrupting the flight by refusing to wear masks and spreading 2020 election conspiracies. Slaughter was elected to the school board of Orting, a town of less than 10,000 people, last year. According to the feds, he told agents in April that he had been at the riot, but insisted he hadn’t committed a crime. “Conservatives don’t protest, they have jobs,” the affidavit reported he said. Both Slaughter and Gottfried are charged with assaulting, impeding or resisting law enforcement officers, and interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder, as well as other misdemeanors.
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