New Hartford, NY -- A New Hartford man photographed at the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection has fired his taxpayer-funded lawyer and sent a fee schedule demanding the government pay him up to millions of dollars to defend himself from federal charges.
Eric Bochene, 49, says that working as his own lawyer comes with a steep price tag -- something that he said the government should pay. And he said it’s only fair to be paid considering the fees courts order for filing documents, as well as salary that the government would have paid his public defender.
“You want to do business with me?” Bochene told Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. “These are my prices.”
If the case proceeds as Bochene sees fit, he thinks his services will be worth “in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.” But his fee schedule contains steep penalties if Bochene feels there’s something underhanded going on: $6 million if there’s an attempt to forge a signature or $5 million for forced giving of bodily fluids, for example.
There’s a $10,000 fee for a 30-minute court appearance or $50,000 if it’s under duress. Research time costs $500 per hour, or $50,000 under duress. Payments are due with 15 dates of invoice, Bochene added.
“I don’t think there’s any evidence that a man can be forced to labor and spend time without compensation,” Bochene said, adding later: “I’m representing myself, so a lot of work gets put into this.”
Bochene told Syracuse.com that he was at the Capitol -- where feds say pictures show him inside -- as an independent journalist. He says he doesn’t conform to the “left/right” political paradigm, and as such isn’t a supporter or detractor of former President Trump.
Eric Bochene, of New Hartford, photographed here in Florence, Italy, in 2015.
Bochene pointed to a website he runs, sansmemetics.net, which bills itself as a place “where unauthorized thought thrives and the status-quo dies!”
But the federal government portrayed Bochene in a much less neutral light in a screenshot of texts attributed to Bochene shortly after the insurrection, which feds say shows that Bochene admitted being inside the Capitol.
“It’s me. I was there,” Bochene told someone, according to the screenshot, adding later: “It was all a false flag. Insurrection act signed last night. Leftistbtrash are being executed right now.”
Bochene is charged with two counts of unlawfully entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds and two counts of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. Those are federal misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in jail.
Bochene has remained free without bail as his case is pending in District of Columbia District Court. He’s among hundreds charged with crimes at the Capitol that day, and is not being prosecuted in the first wave of cases.
To this point, Bochene says all of his court appearances have been via Zoom. He said it’s too early to say whether he’d continue cooperating with the court if he isn’t paid for his time.
Bochene argues he was there legally under his First Amendment rights as a journalist and as a private individual.
District Judge Randolph D. Moss wrote a quick response to Bochene’s demands to be paid, expressing bewilderment and ruling that nothing like that would happen.
“...the Court is unclear exactly what relief Defendant seeks,” Ross wrote.
“...to the extent Defendant is seeking payment for appearing in Court, that argument lacks merit,” Moss added. “Defendant stands charged with several crimes, and is currently released on personal recognizance bond...”
In the end, “[t]he defendant must appear in court as required.”
Bochene is due back to virtual court in late October.
Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at ddowty@syracuse.com or 315-470-6070.