Shaler woman charged in connection with Capitol riot
Federal authorities filed charges Monday against a Shaler woman who they said illegally entered the U.S. Capitol during last year’s Jan. 6 riot.
Melanie M. Archer, 42, faces counts of disorderly conduct in a restricted building; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; entering and remaining in a restricted building; and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
Her co-defendant, Jordan Bonenberger, 26, of Cranberry, was arrested on Friday and charged with the same counts.
The complaint said that Archer entered the Capitol at 2:44 p.m., and images taken from surveillance cameras show her both by herself and with Bonenberger.
Investigators said that Archer was wearing all black, carried a multi-colored drawstring bag and had a white, open-top knitted winter hat. They included several images in the criminal complaint.
According to the court filing, the FBI received tips from multiple people reporting that Archer said she was inside the Capitol during the riot and posted on social media that she was “IN that … a part of that.”
When the FBI attempted to interview her, Archer declined, they said.
A LinkedIn page that appears to belong to Archer shows she graduated from Robert Morris University in 2001 and works as a professional organizer who won a super service award from Angie’s List in 2008, 2011 and 2012.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story said Archer lives in Sharpsburg. She is from Shaler.
Paula Reed Ward is a TribLive reporter covering federal and Allegheny County courts. She joined the Trib in 2020 after spending nearly 17 years at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, where she was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team. She is the author of "Death by Cyanide." She can be reached at pward@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.