The defense team for Jan. 6 D.C. pipe-bomb suspect Brian Cole Jr. accused the U.S. Department of Justice of being “reckless” by insinuating that Cole’s sister and grandmother were somehow involved in the crime. Defense attorney J. Alex Little filed an 11-page rebuttal to the DOJ’s recent 39-page opposition memo, which seeks to prevent Cole’s release from jail pending trial.
Oral arguments on the question were held before U.S. District Judge Amir Ali on Jan. 28. The judge denied an emergency motion for Cole’s release on Jan. 16 and set a status hearing for Feb. 27. Cole was arrested Dec. 4 on a criminal complaint alleging he planted pipe bombs behind the Democratic National Committee building and near the Republican National Committee building between 7:54 p.m. and 8:16 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2021. In January 2026, he was indicted by a federal grand jury with two explosives-related charges.
The DOJ mentioned in its memo that Cole’s sister texted her mother on Jan. 5, 2021, saying she was going to D.C., and that her grandmother cautioned about potential protests. Little countered: “It is family checking in with each other. The government’s decision to publicly imply, with no factual basis, that these private citizens are connected to domestic terrorism is reckless and reveals how little actual evidence it has that Mr. Cole poses a continuing danger.”
Brittany Cole provided an affidavit stating her job as a concert promoter took her to D.C. on Jan. 5 for networking events unrelated to Jan. 6 or the crimes her brother faces. The DOJ also cited Cole’s purchase of items like a pressure cooker, funnel, canning jar, nails, alarm clocks, and wristwatches, claiming they were bomb-making components. Little argued the pressure cooker was used for cooking, as described by Cole during interrogation, and millions of Americans own such devices.
The DOJ asserted Cole conducted an experiment to create potassium chlorate after Jan. 5, but Little noted the beakers were purchased in 2018, years before the charged conduct. Cole’s mother testified that he attempted a science project to make “rocket fuel” in 2018 with no ill intent.
Little emphasized Cole has no criminal history, strong community ties, and family willing to ensure compliance under strict release conditions. The government claims Cole poses an ongoing threat but provides no forward-looking evidence of danger or failure to comply. Cole’s phone wiping habits began 18 months after Jan. 5, consistent with his obsessive-compulsive disorder diagnosis from a neuropsychologist.
The defense maintained the DOJ’s inclusion of items like the pressure cooker and timeline errors in its argument constitute unsupported innuendo. Cole has done nothing dangerous since Jan. 5, 2021.
