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The Oregon House of Representatives on Thursday voted 59 to 1 to expel Republican Representative Mike Nierman, who was accused of helping far-right protesters enter the Capitol in December.
According to the Oregonian newspaper, the vote is the first time the legislature has expelled a seated representative.
Nirman’s seat is likely to remain vacant for the remainder of the legislative session, which is set to end on June 27.
Reportedly, the other 22 Republicans in the state assembly remained silent during the debate. Nirman was the only person with a “no” vote against his ouster.
He had previously been stripped of the commission’s duties and forced to pay $2,000 for damages caused by protesters.
The deputy refused to answer questions on the advice of his lawyer during a committee hearing on the expulsion proposal, according to the newspaper.
He simply said that it was against the Oregon Constitution to close the Capitol to the public and it was “a place where they had a right to be, a place from which the Legislative Assembly had no right to exclude them.”
“Elected leaders must be at the highest possible level,” Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotick (D) said in a statement after the vote.
“The facts are clear that Mr. Nirman unapologetically orchestrated and planned the breach of the Oregon State Capitol,” Kotick said. “His actions were blatant and willful, and he showed no remorse for endangering the safety of everyone in the Capitol that day. Given the exceptional circumstances, this was the only reasonable way forward.”
Kristen Drazan, the GOP leader at Oregon House, said the accident may have led to someone’s death.
“[Nearman] Decide to deliberately come up with a plan to let people into the building [when] He didn’t know how that would happen and was comfortable with it, Drazan said on public radio show “Think Out Loud.” “I am not comfortable with that. There could have been a death easily that day.”
The vote comes after Nierman was charged with two counts: first-degree official misconduct and second-degree criminal misconduct.
Court records indicate that Nirman “unlawfully and knowingly” helped allow far-right protesters, some of whom were armed with rifles and pepper spray, into the statehouse while lawmakers inside held a special session on COVID-19 regulations.
The building was closed at the time and remains so due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Republican congressman, who has served four terms, was seen in a surveillance video on December 21 leaving the building through a locked door and stepping aside so that protesters waiting nearby could sneak inside.
The protesters then clashed with police and allegedly sprayed bear mace at law enforcement officers, according to officials.
The outlet pointed to another video clip showing Nirman talking to an audience of protesters about how they entered the Capitol, even asking them to send text messages to his mobile phone.
“Someone might come out that door and you’re standing there,” Nirman said.
Oregon Public Radio reported that at least three people at the Oregon Capitol protest were active participants during the riots in Washington, D.C., on January 6.
The Oregonian reported that the group also included a right-wing Patriot prayer group based in Vancouver. People were seen wearing three percent militia insignia and a Confederate flag hat.
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