Judges have declined U.S.-proposed sentences in two-thirds of Jan. 6 cases so far

[mahatmakanejeeves]

New: We've tracked every federal case filed against Jan. 6 rioters, and found that the judges have gone below govt recommended sentences in two-thirds of cases so far. Only 74 sentencings after a yr, 627 remain. With
@rachelweinerwp
and
@hsu_spencer

Link to tweet

Judges have declined U.S.-proposed sentences in two-thirds of Jan. 6 cases so far
Of 701 federal defendants, 74 have been sentenced, nearly all for misdemeanors.

Legal Issues

Judges have declined U.S.-proposed sentences in two-thirds of Jan. 6 cases so far

Of 701 federal defendants, 74 have been sentenced, nearly all for misdemeanors

By Rachel Weiner, Tom Jackman and Spencer S. Hsu
Today at 10:08 a.m. EST

When federal judges in Washington began hearing guilty pleas from some of the hundreds of riot participants who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6 last year, some were highly critical of prosecutors for pursuing only misdemeanor charges, and not seeking jail time, for many defendants.

“Is it the government’s view that the members of the mob that engaged in the Capitol attack on January 6 were simply trespassers?” Chief U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell asked incredulously in October. “Is general deterrence going to be served by letting rioters who broke into the Capitol, overran the police … broke into the building through windows and doors … resolve their criminal liability through petty offense pleas?”

But for all four defendants Howell has sentenced, she has imposed less jail time than prosecutors sought, saying that government plea deals in most misdemeanor cases are forcing judges to choose whether short jail terms or years of probation pose a stronger deterrent. And her decisions are not unusual, a Washington Post analysis found.

Federal judges in D.C. have gone below the government recommendation in 49 out of 74 sentencings held for Capitol riot defendants one year after the attack, about two-thirds of the cases. In eight cases where prosecutors asked for jail time, the judges instead opted for probation. Of the 74 people sentenced so far, 35 have been given jail or prison time, 14 home detention and 25 probation alone.



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By Rachel Weiner
Rachel Weiner tries to cover Alexandria's federal court from a small windowless room with no cellphone access. She sometimes ventures outside to write about crime in Alexandria and Arlington. Twitter https://twitter.com/rachelweinerwp

By Tom Jackman
Tom Jackman has been covering criminal justice for The Washington Post since 1998 and anchors the True Crime blog. He previously covered crime and courts for the Kansas City Star. Twitter https://twitter.com/TomJackmanWP

By Spencer Hsu
Spencer S. Hsu is an investigative reporter, two-time Pulitzer finalist and national Emmy Award nominee. Hsu has covered homeland security, immigration, Virginia politics and Congress. Twitter https://twitter.com/hsu_spencer

[dalton99a]

1. Well, they don't look like criminals

They look like regular white people

[SheltieLover]

2. Sentences should all be max!

[quickesst]

3. No mercy

My belief is every single person who breached the capital on January 6th is guilty of insurrection, and should be charged and sentenced to a minimum of 20 years in a federal prison. That is a somewhat realistic view of what I believe should happen, and is a legitimate option. If my darker side was in charge, I would gather every single insurrectionist, secure a parcel of land in the desert, dig a big hole, bulldoze every single one of them into the hole, fill it with concrete, blacktop the area, and turn it into a parking lot that no one will ever use. The icing on the cake would be when the desert reclaims the parking lot and leaves no trace of past human activity. It is a dark fantasy, but one I never would have dreamed of if not for the dark, and traitorous actions of January 6th, 2021, which was the " I've had it up to my fucking neck with this shit" breaking point for me.

[ShazamIam]

4. What happened to mandatory sentencing and enhanced sentencing are those only for people of color?