John Earle Sullivan
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| “ | Dude, this shit's gonna go viral. | „ |
| ~ John Earle Sullivan moments after filming the shooting of Ashli Babbitt |
John Earle Sullivan is a Utah political activist originally from Virginia. Sullivan became infamous for his role in the 2021 United States Capitol storming, where he was responsible for videotaping the shooting of fellow rioter Ashli Babbitt.
Prior to his role in the capitol riots, Sullivan was a controversial Black Lives Matter activist. On June 29, 2020, he and other rioters damaged and looted cars in Provo, Utah during a pro-police event that took place near the Provo police station. Jesse Taggert, a fellow rioter associated with Sullivan, was arrested for shooting and injuring a driver in the event, though the driver in question fortunately survived.
He additionally had shown to have ties with the Proud Boys. Following this revelation, many BLM activists had cut ties with him.
During the riots, he shattered a window, encouraged other rioters to continue raiding the capitol, and caught footage of several rioters attempting to climb through a window. Moments after fellow rioter Zachary Jordan Alam successfully broke through, the police managed to shoot and kill rioter Ashli Babbitt. A day after the riots, he was detained by DC police and later faced eight charges involving his participation in the capitol riots.