Adam Johnson became an internet sensation when he was photographed during the January 6 Capitol riot carrying then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's lectern. The government, as has been the case with all J6 defendants, didn't see it as a trivial matter.
"The now-viral podium photo portrays Johnson as confident, arguably gleeful, while converting government property to his own use during an unlawful siege," a prosecutor wrote in a court filing of the incident.
He was sentenced to 75 days in prison, followed by a year of supervised release, where he was ordered to wear an ankle monitor, "be drugged tested at random, surrender my passports, be restricted to middle district of Florida, and given a nightly curfew," according to Johnson. He also had to pay a $5,000 fine and carry out 200 hours of community service for the misdeed.
Now, however, the tables have turned.
A former Federal prosecutor is accused of stabbing a man on the Howard Frankland Bridge in a fit of rage after a three-car pileup on Tuesday.
Witness Tara Iglinski took photos of the aftermath, which show Patrick Scruggs standing outside the car with an arm raised, and blood covering the victim's arms and hands.
"I was trying to figure out what had caused that," she said.
Troopers say Scruggs had bashed through the window and stabbed the man multiple times. According to troopers, just before, the man had been passed out while behind the wheel, and his car stopped in the middle of traffic on the Howard Frankland Bridge.
Two Good Samaritans had also stopped and evidently startled him awake. The eventual victim drove forward, hit the Good Samaritan's car, then drove into Scruggs' path.
That's when Scruggs stopped and took out his pocket knife.
"It's just so sad that someone would react in that way," said Iglinski. "There's so much road rage nowadays."
Witnesses might not have expected it from Scruggs, had they known he was a Federal prosecutor for ten years.
He just left that job for private practice, but while he served the US attorney's office in Tampa, he helped on high-profile cases, including that of Adam Johnson, who stole the lectern from Nancy Pelosi's office during the capitol insurrection. (Fox13)
Scruggs, who has been charged with aggravated battery, aggravated assault and armed burglary, also allegedly attempted to stab another couple during the incident, but they fled.
Johnson, for his part, said he is eager to be at Scruggs' court appearances.
"Meet the guy who prosecuted me in Tampa for walking in a building on January 6th," Johnson said on X. "What restrictions do you think he should get for stabbing a man repeatedly in public?"
I'll be at all of his court appearances, smiling and waving.
— The Lectern Guy🇺🇸 (@lecternleader) September 27, 2023
I'm already reading news stories and have seen a few podcasts say he wasn't my prosecutor.
— The Lectern Guy🇺🇸 (@lecternleader) September 27, 2023
He was my initial prosecutor in Tampa for my first hearing, which was responsible for my terms of release. The case got moved to DC, where another prosecutor took over.
It's amazing to… https://t.co/YNrhJe2TY0
