Joseph Biggs, a former military service member who helped lead efforts by the Proud Boys to take over the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was sentenced to 17 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and other crimes committed during the riot more than two years ago.
Judge Timothy J. Kelly also sentenced Biggs to three years of supervised release and a ban on any interactions with organizations that advocate violence against the government.
The sentence is far below the 33 year sentence sought by prosecutors.
Back in May, he was convicted alongside former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio and other fellow Proud Boys Ethan Nordean and Zachary Rehl. A fourth defendant, Dominic Pezzola, was acquitted of seditious conspiracy but found guilty of assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers and robbery involving government property.
Prosecutors also wanted to apply a “terrorism enhancement,” which leads to longer prison terms, given his crimes.
Judge Kelly chose to apply that enhancement to one of Biggs’ charges regarding his role in the destruction of a fence surrounding the U.S. Capitol building which, once gone, no longer kept the mob back from law enforcement protecting the building.
17 years is a good duration! Enough time to grow up and become decent humans for most of us.
He will get out before then. The next fascist president will pardon him.
I think it could be a splendid idea to not let the fascists take over then.
I’m gonna try but I don’t have a lot of faith. The two party system makes it hard because sooner or later America gets sick of the democrats or the economy tanks or whatever. And unless republicans have moved beyond whatever anti-democratic phase they’re going through by then, it will be very bad.
Look at you with your lofty goals.
Yea, I’m good with 17 years. He won’t see the light of day for a long time.