The Tragic Story of Matthew Perna
January 6 Capitol protestor commits suicide while awaiting sentencing.
April 4, 2022 — If you were to ask the average conservative or the average America citizen who Matthew Perna is, most likely you would be met with a confused look and a shrugged “I don’t know.” And that is tragic. Matthew’s story perfectly encapsulates the injustice of the Biden administration’s witch hunt and political persecution of Americans who attended a rally on January 6, 2021 and since have been subjected to horrific treatment at the hands of an out-of-control FBI and federal government.
While awaiting sentencing after having his heart broken and his spirit crushed, Matthew reportedly committed suicide on February 25, 2022. The news of his passing was confirmed by his family and an obituary. At the time he took his life, Matthew was only 37 years old. He was from Sharpsville, Pennsylvania and he attended Penn State University.
At one point, Mr. Perna lived in Thailand and South Korea while working as an English teacher. He loved to travel, and travelled in Europe, Asia, South America, India, and across America, his homeland. Matthew loved people, and he loved helping and teaching. He went on a mission trip to Haiti and he loved animals, especially dogs. He was always eager to meet new people, make new friends and bond with others. He enjoyed trying different foods and learning about different cultures throughout his travels and studies.
Matthew was an avid runner, he enjoyed long-distance running and even won several medals. He loved music, and had an extensive library. He held a special bond with his grandfather, who had passed away.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of the few representatives who have spoken out about the treatment of January 6 pre-trial detainees, posted about Matthews passing in a thread on Twitter.
Matthew was a Christian who read the Bible almost daily. He played the piano and saxophone and embraced people from all backgrounds and walks of life.
On January 6, 2021 Matthew Perna drove to Washington, D.C. to “peacefully stand up for his beliefs,” attending the Capitol rally. According to Perna and his family, his goal was to exercise his rights as an American, show solidarity for President Trump and express his concerns about potential electoral misconduct.
According to author and journalist Julie Kelly, who has followed the January 6 cases very closely, after Trump’s speech Mr. Perna wearing a MAGA sweater marched to Capitol Hill. He ended up walking through an already opened door on the Senate side of the building, shortly before 3:00 pm Eastern. We have now learned, after the release of countless videos from that day, Capitol Police stood by allowing people into the building, at times literally waving them in.
Matthew Perna was not violent, he did not assault anyone or damage any property or steal anything. He simply walked through an open door, meandered around the Capitol for 15-20 minutes and then exited the building. That was his big crime.
Upon learning that the FBI was looking for him, Mr. Perna turned himself in and spoke to the FBI attempting to do the right thing. He made the mistake of thinking that the FBI was reasonable and I do not think he understood the gravity of the situation. Mr. Perna was caught up in what the Justice Department called a “Shock and Awe” campaign designed to neutralize dissent and to scare people from protesting at Biden’s inauguration, according to DOJ official Michael Sherwin.
Matthew Perna was hit with a slew of charges, including a felony charge: (1) Obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting, (2) Entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, (3) Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or ground, (4) Disorderly conduct in a Capitol building.
Shortly after his call with the FBI, where he agreed to voluntarily submit to questioning, his nightmare began. By the end of January, 2021 he was arrested at his home by no fewer than six FBI agents. In my humble opinion, he was not given proper legal advice. His lawyer advised him to plead guilty to all four of the charges against him. Mr. Perna had no criminal record or history, he was a good man and he assumed he would be given a light sentence.
That is not what happened though, because the federal government wanted to make an example of every single January 6 defendant, regardless of the individual merits of their case. U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves sought a lengthy prison sentence for Mr. Perna, following his guilty plea, seeking as much as 57 to 71 months in prison.
The DOJ has made absurd claims and allegations from the outset, characterizing January 6 as a so-called insurrection despite no one being charged with that. They described attendees as “white supremacists,” “Neo-Nazis” and “seditionists,” and “domestic terrorists,” despite not being able to charge anyone with domestic terror for lack of meeting the legal threshold to support that.
The government has pursued draconian pre-trial detention for non-violent, first time offenders and have repeatedly requested delays in trials, claiming discovery is too voluminous and they are not ready. This was so they could hold people in jail, in horrific and abusive conditions as long as possible. I believe they did this to get people to take plea deals, to break people.
After more than a year of this relentless and cruel abuse by the legal system and federal government, as well as the smear campaigns by a gleeful and complicit mainstream media, Matthew lost friends, his standing in the community and it broke his heart. He saw no way out other than to end his own life.
One of the other January 6 detainees, Kyle, wrote a letter and drew a picture of Matthew Perna, after the news of his tragic passing.
Tucker Carlson of Fox News had Mr. Perna’s aunt Geri on to share his story.
Geri Perna spoke about her nephew Matthew and the injustice he faced recently.
Ms. Perna recently went on Steve Bannon’s Warroom program to talk about Matthew’s story. She refers to him as a “political prisoner of the establishment.”
This poem was published in the Epoch Times, following his tragic death.
In a normal country, Matthew would have faced at most a couple months probation for his crime of walking into a building for 20 minutes and then exiting peacefully. Perhaps he would have been given a small fine and a few hours of community service.
The Biden administration announced a new “war on domestic terror” and this is the true ugly face of it. This is what it looks like — the most powerful government in the world, turning their eyes inward, against their own citizens and using their power to persecute and smear those who dissent.
Matthew was a good man, a God-fearing patriot who spent his life trying to help educate others and spread love. His life was brought to a depressing, heart breaking, soul crushing end.
Meanwhile, those who spent the summer of 2020 rioting as part of Black Lives Matter and Antifa groups and events, who looted and committed random acts of arson and violence some of which resulted in severe injuries and death, are praised by the same establishment and given preferential treatment.
As I type this, and as you read it, there are still many January 6 political prisoners languishing inside the DC Gulag or in a jail cell where they have been for over a year suffering medical mistreatment and neglect, lack of proper nutrition and psychological as well as physical abuse. Many are being denied the ability to view the evidence that will be used against them, many are confined in isolation and lack proper legal representation.
The media continues to malign and smear these individuals. Sadly Matthew’s name will remain forever tarnished even after his death. You can make sure what happened to Matthew doesn’t happen again by helping to share his story, and by contacting your representatives and demanding they take action and end this unconstitutional oppression of American citizens.