GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn was charged with driving with a revoked license for the 2nd time, his 3rd traffic offense since October

• Rep. Madison Cawthorn was charged with driving with a revoked license for the 2nd time since 2017.
• It's a misdemeanor charge that usually results in a fine or probation.

Republican Rep. Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina was charged with driving with a revoked license after being pulled over in his home state on March 3, the Asheville Citizen Times first reported. It's the second time he's been charged with the offense, and the third traffic offense he's faced since October.

While the 26-year-old first-term congressman could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 days in jail as a result of the misdemeanor offense, the punishment is more often a fine or probation. His court date is set for May 6.

"Our office expects the traffic matters to be resolved quickly and we remain focused on serving the constituents of NC-11," said Luke Ball, Cawthorn's communications director, in a statement to Insider.

Cawthorn, who uses a wheelchair as a result of injuries he sustained in a 2014 car crash in Florida, was pulled over in Cleveland County on the morning of March 3 after an officer saw him cross the center line.

"During the course of the investigation it was determined that the driver's license was in a state of revocation and he was subsequently charged with driving while license revoked," said Trooper Tyler Gantt, according to the Citizen Times.

In addition to the misdemeanor offense, Cawthorn also faces 2 other pending citations for speeding on North Carolina state roads after being pulled over on October 18, 2021 and January 8, 2022. The court dates for those offenses are May 3 and April 18, respectively.

It was unclear whether Cawthorn was also driving with the revoked license during his October and January traffic stops.

Cawthorn was also charged with driving with a revoked license in 2017, but the charge was dismissed.

Cawthorn is among the few members of Congress who has openly defended the rioters who attacked the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. He said in a September 2021 interview that the Capitol rioters were mostly "normal people" who were "just kind of wandering in," while telling a group of supporters in August that the jailed rioters were "political prisoners" who he wanted to "try and bust them out" of jail.

Cawthorn was also among the Republican members of Congress who offered Kyle Rittenhouse an internship in his office after Rittenhouse was found not guilty for killing 2 men at a racial justice protest in 2020.