St. Louis Cardinals superfan “Rally Runner” sentenced to prison in Capitol riot case

A major St. Louis Cardinals fan who used a police shield to lead a mob that overran a line of police officers at a key entrance to the Capitol on Jan. 6 was sentenced Thursday to 10 months in prison, followed by two years of probation.

The 44-year-old rally runner must also pay $2,000 in restitution for the more than $2.9 million in damages to the Capitol and a $1,000 fine.

Runner, who has officially changed his name from Daniel Donnelly Jr., according to court records, appeared before Judge Jia M. Cobb in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He faced a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years probation. The government sought a sentence of 27 months in prison, three years probation and $2,000 in restitution.

Runner was charged on October 11, 2023, with disturbing the peace, a felony, and four misdemeanors: disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, obstructing passage through the Capitol grounds or buildings, and entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds.

In exchange for his guilty plea regarding the March 22 civil unrest, the government dropped the other charges.

Runner is the 29th of 37 defendants in Missouri charged in connection with the Capitol riots who will now be sentenced. Two other defendants in Missouri have already been convicted and are awaiting sentencing, and the cases of six other defendants are still pending.

According to the government's sentencing document filed with the court, Runner traveled to Washington, DC, to attend former President Trump's “Stop the Steal” rally at the Ellipse.

“On January 6, 2021, Runner attended the rally and wanted to show his support by running around the rally in what he called a 'rally run,'” the document states. “Throughout the day, he wore a red 'Keep America Great' hat, red jacket, and red face paint.”

Runner made his way through the crowd on Capitol grounds to the Lower West Terrace entrance, also known as “the tunnel,” the sentencing document says. The area was packed with rioters, it said, and officers were in the tunnel. Police and rioters faced off at the tunnel entrance as the rioters attempted to enter the building.

Runner was standing just outside the tunnel, the government said, helping rioters bring a ladder to the opening. At about 4:10 p.m., it was reported, he moved to the front of the crowd at the tunnel entrance, carrying a police shield he had procured.

As police attempted to force the rioters out of the tunnel, some pushed forward and attacked the officers, the document says. Runner stayed in place, holding his riot shield, while confronting the officers.

“Kicking, screaming and fighting”

“All around, rioters violently physically attacked the officers, kicking, screaming and fighting,” the sentencing document states. “Several rioters used Runner as a human shield; one leaned over Runner and sprayed chemical irritants in the direction of police while Runner held the shield up.”

When the violence subsided, Runner formed a shield wall with other rioters to confront police, the government said. The rioters then used Runner as a shield again and charged past him toward police.

“As the mob poured into the tunnel entrance, a knot of rioters formed against the police cordon,” the document states. “The crowd crowded into the tunnel in a dense mass.”

Runner – who was 6'4″ and weighed 220 pounds – pushed his way into the police line, holding the shield in front of him for several minutes as he slowly crawled forward, the government said. He continued to gain ground in the tunnel, it said, and was able to push the police line almost all the way into the Capitol.

After about ten minutes, the sentencing document states, more officers arrived and helped push Runner and the others out of the tunnel.

“On his way out, Runner stopped at the tunnel entrance, looked out at the crowd and raised his fist in the air in triumph,” the government said.

Later that day, the document says, Runner, still wearing his red “Keep America Great” hat, red jacket and red face paint, posted a 26-minute video on his Facebook page.

“In it, he described his actions on January 6 and reveled in the violence in which he was involved,” the government filing said.

In the video, according to the government, Runner said: “I'm getting a shield and I'm not trying to use violence, but I'm trying to be the one who gets through the furthest, or at least the furthest.”

The document says Runner then added: “I took up a lot of space, I had the shield against rioters and I was right at the front, and for some reason the other people up there at the front did something similar to me… It's like they followed my lead, and that turned out to be a great strategy because the whole crowd did that and was able to advance further than we had been coming all the time, all the time.”

Runner said the rioters had pushed police “to the doors.”

“It worked until more police showed up,” the document quotes Runner as saying. “I was at the front and got through those doors into the Capitol, and then the backup came.”

Runner said: “The burn from the club was horrible. I mean, my skin is already sensitive so it probably affected me more than others, but I tolerated it pretty well and even when I was inside and breathing the stuff in, I thought, okay, I can handle this, it's not that bad, I'm not going to let it put me off.”

He then added: “I've come further than anyone else, I've literally come further than anyone else. I helped us get this far.”

FBI agents interviewed Runner on January 11, 2021, the document says.

“During that interview, he admitted to being at the Capitol on January 6. He said he was 'given' a riot shield and denied entering the Capitol. He expressed no remorse or regret for his actions that day.”

The government said Runner, who is unemployed, has “a significant history of arrests and convictions” dating back to the 1990s. These include possession of a controlled substance, check fraud, violation of a protection order, trespassing, burglary, theft of a motor vehicle, witness tampering and trespassing. Some of the crimes resulted in prison sentences.

A tribute to the St. Louis Cardinals

Before his sentencing, Runner submitted five letters of support from his mother, a neighbor, his former attorney and friends.

“Rally is a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan and he started the Rally Run to pay tribute to them,” wrote his mother, Angela Wexelman. “He really felt like he was helping them by running around the stadium and praying for them…

“Rally's trip to Washington DC on January 6 was wrong. However, he is not and never has been active in any group or organization… Rally was determined to go and pray for Trump, just as he did for the Cardinals.”

Runner's former attorney Al Watkins, who has also represented other defendants in the Jan. 6 shooting, called Runner a “gentle man” who “has struggled with obvious mental health issues since high school.”

“These vulnerabilities were exploited by his classmates for entertainment purposes,” he said.

Watkins said Runner has become a fixture in St. Louis, where he runs around Busch Stadium during home games painted in his team's red colors.

“He believes his positive energy gave his home team, the birds on the bats, the momentum they needed to prevail,” he wrote. “For most, he was a cheerful, friendly, energetic and welcome part of the baseball experience.”

Watkins said that in the years leading up to January 6, 2021, “we failed to protect the vulnerable among us.”

“People who have been protected in the past, we have left to fend for themselves while bombarded with exploitative words and actions,” he wrote. “Without mercy, we are no different than Mr. Runner's classmates in high school who drugged him because it was fun to watch him in his impaired state… a sort of party favor.”

“Grace is appropriate.”