Climate activists face felony charges after allegedly defacing US Constitution in DC

On Friday, the Department of Justice charged Donald Zepeda of Maryland and Jackson Green of Utah with felony destruction of government property, according to Fox News.

Zepeda and Green have been accused of dumping red powder on the case that displayed the historic document. The incident occurred on Feb 14 and the DOJ said their stunt caused more than $50,000 worth of damages.

The two activists are linked to Declare Emegerency, a left-leaning climate justice activist group that believes the world is under a climate emergency caused by fossil fuels, which they claim are genocidal and must be eliminated, according to its website.

In a video of the incident captured by journalist Ford Fischer, Zepeda and Green urged President Biden to "declare an emergency" before vandalizing the historic display.

The two activists claimed that "only wealthy white men" have the rights enshrined in America's founding document, and that they were looking to "foment a rebellion."

Zepeda and Green also doused themselves in red powder in addition to the display. Officers arrested them and took them into custody shortly after the stunt.

Dr. Colleen Shogan, Archivist of the United States, said in a statement following the incident: "The National Archives Rotunda is the sanctuary for our nation's founding documents."

"They are here for all Americans to view and understand the principles of our nation. We take such vandalism very seriously and we will insist that the perpetrators be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," said Shogan.