|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Former Jewish Press Editor Arrested for Participation in January 6th Capitol Protest
Edited by: Fern Sidman
For longtime readers of the iconic Brooklyn based Jewish Press newspaper, the latest news is beyond shocking.
On Thursday, reports stated that the former editor in chief of the paper that has been in existence for over 60 years was arrested and charged with assaulting a police officer during the January 6, 2021, storming of the US Capitol by a throng of Trump supporters.
According to a press release from the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, Elliot Resnick, a 39-year-old New Yorker who had been the editor of the Jewish Press at the time of the Capitol protest was also charged with the felonies of obstructing an officer from performing their duties during an incident of civil disorder, entering and remaining in restricted grounds, disorderly conduct in restricted grounds and demonstrating in a Capitol building, as was reported by the Times of Israel.
Resnick was arrested in New York City and made a court appearance later on Thursday, reports indicated.
Court documents say that Resnick was one of the first people to push their way inside the East Rotunda Doors of the Capitol building on that day that is now etched in the annals of US history. The documents also claim that the Jewish Press editor at the time was part of the mob that rushed the Central East Steps of the Capitol building after the police line there fell, as was reported by the TOI. Footage shows him gesturing for others to follow him up the stairs. The TOI also reported that upon reaching the doors of the building, Resnick is seen grabbing the arm of a police officer who was attempting to deploy a chemical irritant to keep the rioters from entering the Capitol.
The TOI report also stated that upon entering the building, Resnick sought to push open an additional door so more people could get inside. After the door wouldn’t budge, he began grabbing rioters from outside the building and pulling them through the other door that had been pried open.
The New York Post reported that after Politico reported on Resnick’s presence at the Capitol in an April 2021 article, the Jewish Press Editorial Board confirmed he entered the building, but was “covering the rally and the rest of the day’s terrible events for The Jewish Press, where he has been a reporter and editor since 2006.”
“The Jewish Press does not see why Elliot’s personal views on former President Trump should make him any different from the dozens of other journalists covering the events, including many inside the Capitol building during the riots, nor why his presence justifies an article in Politico while the presence of other reporters inside the building does not,” the editorial board wrote, according to Politico and reported on by the Post.
The federal authorities have said that according to video footage, Resnick was wandering around restricted parts of the Capitol on that fateful day for approximately 50 minutes. The Post also reported that the affidavit shows multiple instances of a man authorities said is Resnick roaming the property.
Resnick left his position at the Jewish Press in May 2021, before authorities launched a probe into his actions on January 6th, the Post reported. The FBI agent in the affidavit wrote that he consulted with the US Department of Justice News Media Policy before charges were brought against the former Jewish Press editor.
The Justice Department said that Resnick is one of the roughly 1,000 individuals who have been arrested from nearly all 50 US states for crimes related to the Capitol protest on January 6th, including 320 people who were charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, as was reported by the TOI.
Resnick assumed the position of editor in chief at the Jewish Press in 2018 after the departure of longtime editor, Jason Maoz. Resnick has been Maoz’s assistant editor for a number of years prior to him taking over the top spot in the content and editorial department.
The Jewish Press was founded in 1960 by the late Rabbi Sholom Klass, of blessed memory, and the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, of blessed memory. The latter was gunned down by Egyptian terrorist El Said Nosair on November 5, 1990 at the Marriott Hotel in midtown Manhattan. Rabbi Kahane was the founder and president of the Jewish Defense League and was the leader of the Kach party in Israel. He held a seat in the Israeli Knesset from 1984-1988. Frightened that he would gain more seats in the following election in Israel, the powers that be at the time sought to ban him from running on the spurious grounds of “racism.”
Speaking to the Jewish Voice, Molly Turkel, 93, a resident of the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn said, “I remember reading the Jewish Press when my oldest kids were born over 60 years ago and I have been reading it ever since. It is part of my family, my community and a paper that reflects my values as an Orthodox Jew. Much of my knowledge of Torah wisdom has been gleaned from the popular Torah columnists that have written for the Jewish Press over the many decades since its inception. For that and much, much more, I support the Jewish Press and those who are in their employ.”
