A guy from Washington State was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison on Wednesday for storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Taylor James Johnatakis was convicted in November of seven counts, including obstruction of an official procedure and assaulting police officers.
According to federal prosecutors, Johnatakis led protesters as they attacked the police line outside the Capitol.
“Specifically, using his megaphone, Johnatakis encouraged rioters to advance closer to the police line and roared at them to ‘pack it in! A press statement urges, “Pack it in!” “Johnatakis then instructed the crowd through the megaphone that they were going to push the bike racks ‘one foot’ at a time and counted, ‘one, two, three, GO!!'”
According to prosecutors, at least one cop was hurt during the altercation.
During his trial, Johnatakis represented himself, frustrating Judge Royce Lamberth with his unpredictable demeanor. He defended his case by claiming to be a “sovereign citizen,” which the judge dismissed as “gobbledygook.”
Johnatakis also asked the judge questions during his sentencing, asking “Does the record reflect that I repent in my sins?” Lamberth responded that he was not taking questions, according to the AP.
In a letter following Wednesday’s hearing, Lamberth stated that every choice on how to punish Jan. 6 rioters “aims to discourage these defendants from future violence, dissuade others from taking inspiration from the Capitol riot, and express the community’s moral disapproval of this conduct.”
He rejected the notion that Johnatakis was just practicing his freedom of speech, claiming that his activities were “neither First Amendment-protected activity nor civil disobedience.”
“A society in which everyone does what is right by his own lights, where adherence to the law is optional, would be a society of vigilantism, lawlessness, and anarchy,” he said in his essay.
Lamberth stated Johnatakis’ words throughout the trial demonstrated that he “does not accept responsibility for his actions and does not show true remorse.”
“In any angry mob, there are leaders and there are followers,” he noted in an email. “Mr. Johnatakis was a leader.” “He knew exactly what he was doing that day.”