Trump-Appointed Judge Gives Former Proud Boys Chairman Longest Prison Sentence Of Jan. 6 Defendants
Katelynn Richardson on September 5, 2023
A federal judge sentenced former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio to 22 years in prison on Tuesday, according to multiple reports.
The 22-year sentence given by District Judge Tim Kelly, a Trump appointee, is less than the 33-year sentence sought by prosecutors but still the longest of any Jan. 6 defendant, according to multiple reports. Three other Proud Boys leaders who were convicted by a jury of seditious conspiracy alongside Tarrio in May, Zach Rehl, Joe Biggs and Ethan Nordean, received sentences of 15, 17 and 18 years, respectively.
Nordean previously tied with Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who was given 18 years in May, for the longest sentence.
Tarrio was not present in the Capitol on Jan. 6 because the police had arrested him two days before for destroying a Black Lives Matter banner, ordering him to leave the city, according to the indictment. Prosecutors argue his absence “does nothing to detract from the severity of his conduct.”
“By provoking a desire for political violence among his followers, creating [Ministry of Self-Defense], filling it with men he could trust to ‘fit in or fuck off,’ inflaming the group with rage against law enforcement, and then turning it loose on the Capitol, Tarrio did far more harm than he could have as an individual rioter,” they wrote in a court document. “Using his powerful platform, Tarrio has repeatedly and publicly indicated that he has no regrets about what he helped make happen on January 6.”
During the hearing, Kelly agreed Tarrio was responsible for the conduct of his co-defendants, according to reports.
Tarrio’s hearing was scheduled for last week but was postponed after the judge got sick, according to CNBC.
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