A Florida Man Who Was Indicted for Assaulting Police and Setting Off Explosive at the US Capitol Riot Has Been Arrested Again on Gun Charges
A 39-year-old Florida man, Daniel Charles Ball, was arrested in May 2023 for his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. He was indicted on charges including assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers with a deadly or dangerous weapon, using fire or an explosive to commit any felony, and obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder.
Ball, who was a resident of Homosassa, Florida, was arrested by Citrus County deputies after being identified by his probation officer. According to court documents, Ball entered the US Capitol and, along with other rioters, violently pushed against fully uniformed police officers attempting to keep them out of the building. He then threw an explosive device into the entranceway, which “flashed and exploded multiple times” on the officers in the tunnel.
The device caused pain and hearing loss to the officers, some of whom suffered these effects for months. Ball’s actions were captured on video, which showed him and other rioters assaulting police officers, including a heroic Metropolitan Police Department Officer Michael Fanone who was dragged into the crowd, tased, and brutally beaten.
In January 2025, President Donald Trump issued a sweeping pardon to the rioters, including Ball, which dismissed the charges against him with prejudice, meaning the case cannot be re-filed. However, just one day later, Ball was arrested again on federal gun charges for possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.
The arresting officer found that Ball had possession of both a firearm and ammunition, having previously been convicted of domestic violence, resisting law enforcement with violence, and battery on a law enforcement officer. Despite the pardon, Ball’s new arrest indicates that the legal system can still take action against those who commit crimes, even after a pardon.
