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(WSIL)---With the hearings for the January 6th insurrection, committee members say never before seen evidence will be presented at Thursday's hearing. 

Christopher Mullins is a professor from SIU who specializes in criminal justice and political violence.

He said there are ways for viewers to be able to keep up with the hearing, starting by knowing who is presenting and where they stand.

"So my recommendation to viewers is: know who these people are. Google them on the phone when they come up. They'll have a page and in 2 seconds you'll know who this person is, and that will help you know where they're coming from. Otherwise, pay close attention. Listen carefully to the details, and don't automatically just dismiss the committee's process if you have a political persuasion that is against it because they're claiming that they're bringing in a lot of solid evidence and it's that sort of evidence and the strength that we want to look for," said Mullins. 

The insurrection was the first time in U.S. history where there was an attempt to halt the peaceful transition of power. 

Mullins said in his experience in studying events like this on a global scale, the way these hearings are handled could change our political system. 

"It's a common saying among people like me that study political violence: an unpunished insurrection is just a dry run. And we are seeing people who are being arrested, like the Proud Boys and the like, and there are already people who have been convicted, sitting in prison now, but if you don't address the people at the top, and the organizers, then it will happen again. And it will be worse next time. They know what doesn't work now. And they'll be better at it. We see this in nations all over the world. If you fail a coup, in 6 to 8 months, you're going to see another one," Mullins said. 

Mullins also said that during the hearings, the public should pay attention to details and physical evidence.