Topline
A Pennsylvania man was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison on Friday for assaulting police officers during the Capitol insurrection, including with a flagpole bearing a Trump flag, which he claimed was actually a flag backing police.
A 72 year-old Pennsylvania man was sentenced to 3.5 years in federal prison for assaulting a police … [+]
Key Facts
Howard C. Richardson, 72, of King of Prussia, Pa., struck a Metropolitan Police Department officer three times with a flagpole, “using enough force to break” it, before joining a group of rioters in shoving a large metal sign into a row of officers, according to court documents.
Video evidence shows the flagpole he used to strike the officer was carrying a Trump campaign flag, but Richardson strangely asserted that it was a “Back the Blue” flag, prosecutors said in court filings.
Richardson, who was arrested last November in Philadelphia and pleaded guilty in April to assaulting, resisting or impeding officers, must pay $2,000 in restitution on top of the prison term.
Federal prosecutors had pushed for a 46-month prison sentence for Richardson, whose son is a 20-year veteran police officer, they said.
He will be placed on three years of supervised release when his term is up.
Surprising Fact
Richardson is one of more than 860 rioters at the January 6 insurrection who have been arrested in the 19 months since the riot took place, according to court documents. Some 260 of them have been charged with assaulting officers or impeding law enforcement. The only states where no one has been charged in federal court related to the riots are North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming, according to the federal Department of Justice, which is still actively identifying and arresting rioters.
Key Background
The sentencing comes two weeks after a former police officer in Virginia was sentenced to more than seven years in prison on counts of obstructing Congress and entering a restricted government area with a dangerous weapon. It was tied for the longest sentence for a Capitol riot case.
Further Reading
Florida And Texas Lead The Country In January 6 Capitol Riot Charges (Forbes)
Ex-Cop Faces 87 Months In Prison For Jan. 6 Riot—Tying For Longest Sentence (Forbes)
Ex-Proud Boys Leader Indicted For Seditious Conspiracy In Sweeping Jan. 6 Case (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/08/26/january-6-rioter-sentenced-to-35-years-for-assaulting-officers/