Colton Michael Brown, a member of Patriot Front and who allegedly conspired to riot at a Pride event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, has officially pleaded not guilty to charges.
Brown’s arraignment was yesterday, Aug. 22, in the Kootenai County Magistrate Court. He appeared via Zoom.
According to official documents, Brown, 23, was one of 31 men from around the country who were arrested June 11 after a witness watched the men load into a U-Haul; the witness described them as “like a little army”.
Police pulled over the truck and allegedly found the occupants had riot gear, a smoke grenade, and paperwork that appeared to lay out a military-style operation on disrupting the pride event.
After being arrested, Brown posted the $300 bail and returned to Ravensdale, Washington.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League, Patriot Front is a white nationalist organization that broke off from Vanguard America after the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Patriot Front’s website shows the group’s goal is to create a “New American State” based on race before those not of “European diaspora” replace the white population.
Brown appears to be a leader in Patriot Front; Unicorn Riot, a nonprofit, left-wing news organization, released a massive trove of leaked communications, photos, and videos last January, which appears to show Brown, under the alias “John WA” was the Pacific Northwest “Network 8” director.
As director, Brown appears to have been in charge of leading meetings and trainings, coordinating vandalism missions, and encouraged other members to buy Patriot Front propaganda to help fund the organization.
As an example of vandalism, Enumclaw and other cities on the Plateau have seen hundreds of Patriot Front stickers and flyers placed around town over the last two years. It’s unknown if Brown himself was involved in these specific efforts, though he was investigated by the King County Sheriff’s Office and FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in 2020 for placing stickers around Maple Valley.
Charges of malicious mischief were eventually dropped.
Other Washington residents who were charged with Brown include Spencer Thomas Simpson of Ellensburg; James Julius Johnson of Concrete; Mishael Joshua Buster of Spokane; and Justin Michael O’Leary of Des Moines. They’ve all pled not guilty to charges.
Brown’s current jury trial date is set for Nov. 21, 2022; the official charge of criminal conspiracy is punishable by up to a year of incarceration, a $5,000 fine, and up to two years probation.
It’s unclear at this time if Brown remains a Ravensdale resident, as court documents record he submitted a change of address. This information was not immediately available to the Courier-Herald, and this article will be updated when it is received.
