Jord Meacham, Rest In Peace

Written by Julie Kelly, originally posted on her Substack HERE.

Nejourde Thomas “Jord” Meacham

The Meachum family

Nejourde Thomas “Jord” Meacham was the sort of person the elites in Washington despise.

One of ten children in what appears to be a tight-knit family, Jord lived in rural Utah near the Nevada border working on his family’s ranch; he enjoyed fishing, hunting, and riding horses. “He was a big history buff. Listening to music was a big part of his life and young kids were drawn to him,” his obituary read. Jord is survived by his parents, siblings, grandparents, and “many aunts, uncles, and cousins.”

By all accounts, Jord led a quiet life animated by family gatherings and summers at an Alaskan fishery. Unlike those who targeted him, Jord did not earn a law degree from an Ivy League university, hone his skills at Quantico, or trade gossip with news reporters at D.C. hotel bars.

And on January 6, 2021, Jord made a decision that deeply offended the ruling class in the nation’s capital: he demonstrated his support for Donald Trump.

According to the FBI, Jord and his uncle, Odin, traveled to Washington on January 5. “[They] attended the rally at the Washington Monument,” a July 2023 affidavit read. “They then walked with the crowd to the U.S. Capitol building. As they approached the Capitol, Odin became separated from [Jord]. Later that afternoon, they reunited and left the area.”

While carrying a Trump flag—a detail the FBI agent intentionally noted in his report—Jord, 19 at the time, entered the Capitol and spent less than ten minutes inside the building. He did not assault a police officer or damage government property. And although the complaint stated Jord was escorted out by police that afternoon, he was not arrested at the time.

Instead, Jord’s arrest came more than 30 months later. After Jord gave a voluntary interview with the FBI the day after his uncle was arrested for his participation in the Capitol protest, the feds opened an investigation into the young man. Jord was arrested on August 2 and charged with four common misdemeanors. (The FBI accused Jord of lying about his whereabouts on January 6 but did not charge him accordingly.)

On August 28, U.S. District Court Judge Reggie Walton, one of the most unhinged judges overseeing January 6 cases, scheduled Jord’s arraignment.

Later that evening, Jord, 22, killed himself.

Beyond Any Parent’s Worst Nightmare

According to a police report from the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office, Jord’s father, Thomas, had attempted to contact his son several times that day. When he couldn’t reach him, Thomas Meacham went to the property where Jord lived—in a shed converted into an apartment near the family’s ranch.

And that’s when Thomas Meacham encountered the unimaginable.

“Thomas tried the door but it was locked,” the responding officer wrote. “Thomas could hear Nejourde gasping inside and forced the door open. Thomas found Nejourde laying on the floor from an apparent self inflicted gunshot wound to the head.”

“I entered the shed and found Nejourde by the table, face down and in a growing pool of blood. An entry wound was above his right ear and the exit wound above his left ear. Nejourde was taken (sic) gasping breaths with a large pause in between. The ambulance then arrived and I directed them to the back of the house. Nejourde was still gasping and still had a heartbeat.”

LifeFlight arrived shortly thereafter but it was too late.

Jord Meacham, born on June 16, 2001, was pronounced dead at 9:21 p.m.

The office of Matthew Graves, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, announced in a brief filing on September 1 that Jord had “passed away” and the case against him would be closed. A spokeswoman for Graves’ office refused further comment. Two calls to the prosecutor handling the case were unreturned.

Jord is the fourth known suicide of a January 6 defendant. Christopher Stanton Georgia, 53, shot himself in the chest a few days after January 6; he had been arrested and charged with unlawful entry and violating the city’s curfew. Mark Aungst, 47, killed himself in July 2022, a month after pleading guilty to the petty offense of “parading” in the Capitol.

Pennsylvania resident Matthew Perna, 37, took his life last year after learning the DOJ would seek years in prison for his felony obstruction plea. His aunt, Geri Perna, has since become an outspoken advocate for January 6 defendants.

In an email to me, Geri said, “I am utterly heartbroken upon hearing about Jord Meacham's suicide. I have been speaking out about the mental torture the January 6 defendants have experienced since my nephew Matthew hanged himself on February 25, 2022. I knew he would not be the last; unfortunately, I was correct. The shame and worry are so great that they find themselves depleted of hope. How many more are going to take their lives in the meantime? This young man was 22 years old and had his entire life ahead of him.”

Jord did have his life ahead of him. But in the short term, he and his family would’ve been subjected to ongoing torment inflicted by a cruel and ruthless DOJ. He would’ve been openly berated by a lunatic judge—Walton accused one man who pleaded guilty to a petty offense of “disgrac[ing] this country in the eyes of the world” and “attack[ing] the government”—in open court. He would’ve been branded a domestic terrorist despite the low-level charges filed against him. He would’ve been hounded by the news media, both local and national.

Such is the fate of every January 6 defendant. And Jord undoubtedly knew the nightmare in front of him.

Without confirmation from his family, it’s speculation at this point to conclude his suicide was directly caused by the pending case but impossible to imagine, considering the timing, that it was not at least a partial factor. Jord was employed, had a supportive family and community, and, according to his release conditions, was not a drug or alcohol user. (D.C. courts did prohibit Jord from possessing a firearm, something he might have found untenable considering his occupation as a cattle rancher and vocational hunter.)

It cannot be pure coincidence that Jord took his life just hours after Walton scheduled his arraignment.

Bloodthirsty Ghouls Cheer Misery

But one would be hard pressed to find any Democrat expressing sympathy or, God forbid, outrage over the human wreckage left in the wake of Attorney General Merrick Garland’s and Graves’ ongoing pursuit of Americans who protested at the Capitol more than 32 months ago.

To the contrary, social media accounts mocked Jord’s suicide—either suggesting Jord deserved his fate or that Donald Trump was to blame.

A similar state of euphoria engulfed the Left last week following the sentencing of five Proud Boys. Democrats cheered the news that men convicted of no serious crime—including one who wasn’t even in Washington on January 6—will spend as much time in prison as murderers, drug traffickers, and serial rapists.

CNN host Kaitlan Collins and D.C. cop turned crisis actor Michael Fanone, who cried the day he was assaulted and seems to cry on cue during televised interviews, mocked two Proud Boys for breaking down during their sentencing hearings on September 1. A CNN “legal analyst” lamented the fact Judge Timothy J. Kelly did not add more time to Enrique Tarrio’s 22-year sentence.

Still Unsatisfied

As the three-year anniversary of January 6 approaches, online groups such as the “Sedition Hunters” continue to post images of those at the Capitol still not charged. When an individual is arrested, no matter how minimal the offense, these accounts celebrate the news.

Graves’ office last week published its sixth update in what DOJ calls the “Capitol Breach” investigation, bragging about the number of arrests, plea deals, and trial convictions. “[The investigation and prosecution of those responsible for the attack continues to move forward at an unprecedented speed and scale. The Department of Justice’s resolve to hold accountable those who committed crimes on January 6, 2021, has not, and will not, wane,” a September 6 press release warned.

So, who is to blame for this insatiable bloodlust? Is it Joe Biden, who claims Trump supporters and those involved in the events of January 6 “represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic?” Is it federal judges and line prosecutors who routinely compare January 6 to terror attacks such as 9/11, Pearl Harbor, and the Boston Marathon bombing? Is it members of the press who relentlessly pursue these individuals and their families, fueling shame and hatred on a daily basis?

The answer, of course, is all of the above. But adults ultimately are responsible for their own behavior—and the sad, alarming truth is that millions of our countrymen will shed no tears for Jord and his family. They won’t consider the ramifications of branding Americans with whom they disagree politically as “terrorists.” They don’t care that this soulless ruling class is rapidly tearing away the boundaries of the law, the Constitution, fairness, and human decency.

In the meantime, Jord Meacham’s family and community, like so many across the country tortured by their own government, will never be the same. Their silent scream fades in the political winds as this DOJ marches on—undeterred, unfinished, and unrepentant.