Nurse from Kentucky says she lost job for attending Capitol riot. ‘I would do it again’

A Kentucky woman who attended last week’s riot in Washington, D.C., and entered the Capitol said she was fired from her nursing job at an Indiana hospital.

Lori Vinson of Morganfield in western Kentucky said she does not have any regrets about participating in the Jan. 6 breach of the Capitol, WFIE reported. She says she did not participate in criminal behavior, but was still fired from Ascension St. Vincent in Evansville, Indiana, according to WFIE.

Five people were killed in the Jan. 6 riot and dozens more were injured. More than 100 people have been arrested following the Capitol takeover, Politico reported.

Rioters broke into the U.S. Senate chamber and reached the doors of the U.S. House of Representatives, while lawmakers were evacuated and taken to undisclosed locations.

But the registered nurse said she felt like a tourist, not a rioter, when entering the Capitol, WZTV reported.

“The doors were open, people were filing through, there were no signs that said, ‘Do not enter,’” Vinson said, according to WZTV. “There were no cops saying ‘Don’t come in.’”

Lawmakers from both parties have said President Donald Trump bears some responsibility for the riot. Trump was impeached for a second time earlier this week for inciting an insurrection at the Capitol.

Vinson, a Trump supporter, felt she did nothing wrong when attending the riot. She said she is glad she took part in the event, WFIE reported.

“You know people have asked, ‘Are you sorry you’ve done that?’ Absolutely I am not,” Vinson told the station. “I am not sorry for that, I would do it again tomorrow.”

The FBI contacted Vinson, but she said she will not face any charges, according to WEHT.

She said she has appealed her termination and is awaiting a response. The hospital told WZTV it could not comment on employee matters.

“I’m not mad. I’m hurt that Ascension didn’t see my worth to them. But I’m not upset that I stood up for what I thought was right,” Vinson said, according to WEHT.

Evansville is situated along the Ohio River in southwestern Indiana near the state’s border with Illinois and Kentucky.

This story was originally published January 15, 2021 at 6:47 AM with the headline "Nurse from Kentucky says she lost job for attending Capitol riot. ‘I would do it again’."