Sue Ianni decries Natick Town Meeting vote on Capitol riots condemnation
Ianni, a Town Meeting member, was arrested and charged in connection with the Jan. 6 riot inside the U.S. Capitol. She criticized a Town Meeting resolution that condemned those who took part in the riots.
Henry Schwan
NATICK — Sue Ianni believes she’s being persecuted by some Town Meeting members.
Ianni, a Town Meeting member herself, shared her opinions Wednesday morning after the representative body overwhelmingly voted Tuesday night to condemn the Jan. 6 riots inside the U.S. Capitol.
The final vote on the nonbinding resolution was 113-20, with seven abstentions.
“It’s political persecution of conservatives,” Ianni told the Daily News in a phone interview.
More:Natick Town Meeting member Ianni arrested; residents call it 'great first step'
Ianni faces charges in connection with the riots after a published photograph showed her inside the Capitol, raising her right arm in defiance among a throng of protesters.
She faces two charges: knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority; and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. Ianni’s next scheduled court hearing is May 28.
'Vicious in nature'
Ianni watched Tuesday night’s virtual vote, calling it “vicious in nature.” Her three-year, elected term as a Town Meeting member expires next March.
The resolution, which did not name Ianni, called the riot a “despicable act” and said anyone who took part in it doesn’t represent the sentiments of Town Meeting or the town of Natick.
More:Legal opinion: Sue Ianni must be removed from Town Meeting if convicted and incarcerated
Ianni took issue with what she called “inflammatory” language in the resolution that said rioters sought to do bodily harm to certain members of Congress. She said that kind of language, based on “lies and fantasies,” and condemnations of her on social media, has resulted in instances of police protection at her Natick home.
“The inflammatory language they use is based on hateful fantasies that puts my family in danger,” Ianni said. “They’re trying to intimidate anyone that disagrees with them politically.”
Jay Ball, a 30-year Town Meeting member, drafted and presented the resolution.
A call to Ball's home requesting comment on Wednesday morning was not immediately returned.
Members voted to strike a sentence before approval, because the language could be interpreted to paint those who voted down the measure as "complicit" to the attacks on the Capitol.
The stricken sentence read: "We too are members of government, and for us to view the abhorrent act that took place on January 6th without speaking out is to be complicit."
Charge of hypocrisy levied against Town Meeting
“Hypocrisy” is a word Ianni used for Town Meeting members.
She wonders why they don’t condemn other protesters, including Antifa rioters at Black Lives Matter rallies; the more than 200 people arrested during the nomination hearings for then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh; or the nearly 600 Women’s March participants arrested in the U.S. Senate building who objected to the immigration policies of former President Donald Trump.
As Ianni sees it, the resolution is nothing more than the town’s effort to silence political conservatives.
“They’re going after me and outspoken conservatives in Natick," she said. "They want to shut me up.
“They’re like a dog with a bone. That’s what this is all about. They want to teach me a lesson.”
Events leading up to the resolution
Town officials have received numerous calls and emails calling for Ianni’s removal. An online petition, sponsored by resident Ben Jackson who demanded Ianni’s removal from Town Meeting, collected more than 500 signatures.
More:Without naming Ianni, Natick board condemns 'shocking and disgraceful events' at Capitol
One week after the riot, then-Select Board Chairman Jonathan Freedman stated in an open meeting that the board doesn’t have the authority to remove a Town Meeting member. Town Meeting members are neither town employees nor officers, meaning the board has no authority over them or their tenure, said Freedman.
The town's charter prohibits the recall of Town Meeting members.
In a Daily News story published two days after the riot, Ianni declined comment when asked if she had marched to the Capitol and entered the building. But she did say that "too many people were arrested wrongly for a peaceful protest after being waved in by Capitol police.”
Ianni also said she was the lead organizer for 11 buses of Trump supporters that left Massachusetts the day before Jan. 6 protest that included a speech by Trump near the Capitol building. The bus trip was done on behalf of Super Happy Fun America, which Ianni described as “a civil-rights organization that peacefully protests the leftist cabal taking over this country.”
Ianni said those who attended the protest should not be labeled "domestic terrorists."
“We were expressing our First Amendment rights to protest an illegal election,” Ianni said of Super Happy Fun America's attendance in Washington. “It was very moving, very inspiring. It’s what America is all about.”
Henry Schwan is a multimedia journalist for the Daily News. Follow Henry on Twitter @henrymetrowest. He can be reached at hschwan@wickedlocal.com or 508-626-3964.