Record at a Glance
- Category
- Jan 6th
- Age in NPR record
- 30
- Location
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Charges
- Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building; Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building; Theft of Government Property
- Case status
- Pleaded not guilty; Convicted; Sentenced
- Presidential action
- Pardon
Case Summary
Three people called the FBI after seeing videos on Stewart Parks' Instagram account from inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, court documents indicate. The FBI then obtained a search warrant for Parks' account, where they allegedly found messages between him and other users talking about the riot. In one, Parks says: "Let's just say this dc trip was more eventful than the 8th grade trip," referencing the popular custom of taking eighth-graders on a trip to Washington, D.C. The person he messaged replied: "It f***ing looked like it. I'm glad you took those vids down now because the fbi is hunting yall." Parks is also seen in video surveillance from inside the Capitol that day, according to court documents, and in one he is allegedly seen taking a hand-held metal detector wand and exiting the building. Records obtained by the FBI from Southwest Airlines show Parks traveled from Nashville to Washington on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021, with another man now charged in connection with the riot, Matthew Baggott. They flew back on Jan. 7, 2021.
Case History
Parks pleaded Not Guilty to all charges. Bench trial held 5/1/-5/3/2023. Parks was found Guilty on all charges. Sentenced on 11/15/2023 to 8 months incarceration; 12 months supervised release; $95 special assessment. Parks 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 - Supporting Reporting
NPR video evidence pageNPR
Case summary, charges, procedural updates and image are drawn from the NPR Jan. 6 archive snapshot dated 2026-09-25 unless otherwise indicated.