Prosecutors request prison sentence for man carrying Trump flag in Senate chamber on Jan. 6
By Mychael Schnell - 07/15/21 01:32 PM EDT
Prosecutors are requesting a prison sentence for a man who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 and carried a Trump flag into the Senate chamber.
Paul Allard Hodgkins, 38, pleaded guilty last month to one count of obstructing an official proceeding.
Prosecutors are now encouraging a federal judge to sentence Hodgkins to an 18-month prison term, contending that there is a need to prevent domestic terrorism.
“The need to deter others is especially strong in cases involving domestic terrorism, which the breach of the Capitol certainly was,” Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Mona Sedky said in a government sentencing request for Hodgkins, according to The Washington Post.
Sedky called on FBI Director Christopher Wray’s testimony from March before the Senate that said the issue of homegrown violent extremism is “metastasizing,” with some individuals being encouraged by the Capitol riot, according to the Post.
She also asked U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss of Washington to acknowledge previous court filings which illustrate that despite convicted individuals not having criminal history, their views make them “unique among criminals in the likelihood of recidivism,” the Post reported.
If Hodgkins is sentenced, it will be the first time a defendant from the Capitol riot serves prison time, according to the Post.
His sentencing is scheduled for Monday at 10 a.m.
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https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/563214-prosecutors-request-prison-sentence-for-man-carrying-trump-flag-in