A federal choose on Monday sentenced the primary Capitol rioter convicted at trial to 87 months, or simply over seven years in jail — the longest time period of incarceration to this point for a defendant within the Justice Division’s felony investigation of the Jan. 6 assault on Congress.
Man Wesley Reffitt, 49, of Wylie, Texas, was convicted by a federal jury in March of 5 felony counts, together with obstruction of justice in addition to coming into and remaining in a restricted constructing or grounds with a firearm.
Federal prosecutors with the U.S. Division of Justice had requested that Reffitt be sentenced to 15 years in jail. Prosecutors had additionally — for the primary time — requested a federal district courtroom choose to use a terrorism enhancement, which might successfully outline below legislation {that a} rioter’s actions amounted to home terrorism.
“We do consider that what he was doing that day was home terrorism and we do consider that he is a home terrorist,” Assistant U.S. Lawyer Jeffrey Nestler mentioned Monday.
However the choose overseeing Reffitt’s case, Dabney Friedrich, turned down the request, saying that there have been a number of different defendants from the Jan. 6 assault the place DOJ selected to not pursue the terrorism enhancement, regardless of their conduct showing to be far more critical and threatening than what Reffitt was convicted of at trial.
Reffitt’s legal professional, Clinton Broden, argued the DOJ was unfairly looking for to make an instance of Reffitt just because he took his case to trial.
“That is the one case the place the federal government has requested for the terrorism enhancement, and that is the one case the place the defendant has gone to trial,” Broden mentioned. “I do not suppose it takes a rocket scientist to determine that out.”
Reffitt is among the many greater than 850 folks who’ve been charged in reference to the lethal breach of the Capitol constructing on Jan. 6, 2021, which disrupted a joint session of Congress convened to establish and rely the electoral votes associated to the 2020 presidential election. Over 200 defendants have already pleaded responsible to a wide range of misdemeanors and felony expenses, with some being sentenced to years in federal jail.
Reffitt’s legal professional, Clinton Broden, requested that his shopper be sentenced to not more than two years. He mentioned he was shocked by the prosecution’s suggestion, since his shopper wasn’t accused of coming into the Capitol or assaulting any law enforcement officials that day.
“It is completely absurd,” Broden informed The Related Press throughout a phone interview final month. “I definitely do not condone what Mr. Reffitt did. And I believe all people realizes the seriousness of the offenses. However on the similar level, there must be some proportionality right here.”
Federal sentencing pointers in Reffitt’s case referred to as for a jail sentence starting from 9 years to 11 years and three months.
Throughout the trial, prosecutors sought to solid Reffitt, a member of the Texas Three Percenters militia group, as a ringleader of one of many first waves of the mob that breached the Capitol from the constructing’s west facet.
Movies performed in courtroom confirmed Reffitt climbing a stone banister close to the place scaffolding had been put up upfront of President Joe Biden’s inauguration, and Reffitt confronting U.S. Capitol Law enforcement officials who warned him to again down earlier than they fired less-than-lethal ammunition and pepper spray to cease his advance. Different movies introduced in courtroom confirmed Reffitt gesturing to the group behind him in what seemed to be an try to get them to maneuver up the steps towards a number of entryways that lead into the constructing.
At one level within the trial, prosecutors performed first-person footage that Reffitt had recorded with a 360-degree digital camera mounted on his helmet whereas within the crowd on the “Save America” rally previous to the assault.
“We’re taking the Capitol earlier than the day is out,” Reffitt says within the video. “All people is in the identical concord on that … dragging ’em out kicking and f***ing screaming.”
“I did not come right here to play video games … I simply wish to see Pelosi’s head hit each f***ing stair on the best way out,” he says later. “I believe we have now the numbers to make it occur … with out firing a single shot.”
The Justice Division’s case additionally relied on two key witnesses: Rocky Hardie, a former member of the Texas Three Percenters, who testified towards Reffitt in alternate for immunity to cooperate, and Reffitt’s 19-year-old son, Jackson, who submitted a web based tip to the FBI first alerting them to his father’s plans weeks earlier than the riot, in the end resulting in Reffitt’s arrest on Jan. 16, 2021.
Throughout an interview with ABC Information from jail final December, Reffitt mentioned he “by no means anticipated something like this to occur.”
“This has been disastrous for me and my household, particularly for my women, my son — truly, all of my household,” Reffitt informed ABC Information
