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.

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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.