1st Capitol rioter to go to trial sentenced to 7 years in prison
Guy Reffitt, the first Jan. 6 defendant to go to trial rather than take a plea deal, was sentenced to over 7 years in prison on Monday, the longest punishment yet pertaining to the Capitol riot, The Washington Post reports.
On March 8, Reffitt was convicted of five felony offenses, including "obstruction of Congress as it met to certify the 2020 election result, interfering with police and carrying a firearm to a riot, and threatening his teenage son, who turned him in to the FBI," the Post writes.
Despite the already-lengthy prison sentence, U.S. District Judge Dabney L. Friedrich notably opted not to indulge the Justice Department's request for a so-called "terrorism enhancement," which would have extended Reffitt's time behind bars, NBC News reports.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Reffitt was also sentenced to "three years of probation, $2,000 in restitution, and mandatory mental health treatment," NBC News adds.
"There are plenty of people who feel that democracy isn't working for them. There are unfortunately a lot in the United States right now who feel that way," Friedrich said. "But in a democracy, the answer to that frustration is not rebellion."
Speaking in court, Reffitt said he "clearly f---ed up" in engaging with and attending the riot. "I did want to definitely make an apology, multiple apologies really, and accept my responsibility because I do hate what I did," he said.
Prior to Reffitt, the longest sentence handed down to a Jan. 6 rioter was 63 months, per the Post.
-
5 cinematic cartoons about Bezos betting big on 'Melania'Cartoons Artists take on a girlboss, a fetching newspaper, and more
-
The fall of the generals: China’s military purgeIn the Spotlight Xi Jinping’s extraordinary removal of senior general proves that no-one is safe from anti-corruption drive that has investigated millions
-
Why the Gorton and Denton by-election is a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’Talking Point Reform and the Greens have the Labour seat in their sights, but the constituency’s complex demographics make messaging tricky
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
Jan. 6: Ultimately a success?Feature The White House website offers a revisionist history of the Jan. 6 coup attempt
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
