Jonathan Daniel Carlton

Case Summary

Florida state corrections officer Jonathan Carlton initially told the FBI that he had traveled to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, for a pro-Trump rally but never entered the Capitol on Jan. 6. But text messages and GPS coordinates associated with Carlton’s phone, court documents say, suggested otherwise. “Where are you?” Carlton allegedly texted his friend Bradley Weeks the afternoon of the insurrection. Weeks, who is facing his own charges related to Jan. 6, allegedly responded that he was on the left side of the Capitol. As the two tried to meet up that day, court documents say, Carlton wrote that he was “inside by the window we breached.” He allegedly complained that his leg was injured and his face was burning. He told the FBI later that he assumed the burning was a result of pepper spray. Court documents show photographs of Carlton and Weeks together outside the Capitol on Jan. 6 and surveillance inside the building allegedly shows him inside the Capitol as well.

Case History

Carlton pleaded Guilty to one charge: Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building. The other charges are dismissed. Sentenced on 8/26/2022 to 36 Months of Probation; 40 hours community service; Special Assessment of $10; Restitution of $500. Carlton received a full pardon on January 20, 2025

Sources

• Primary Documentation
  NPR Jan. 6 Defendant DatabaseNPR
• Primary Documentation
  Underlying court recordCourt record linked by NPR

Case summary, charges, procedural updates and image are drawn from the NPR Jan. 6 archive snapshot dated 2026-09-25 unless otherwise indicated.