WASHINGTON – A Washington man who led a Jan. 6 attack on officers and represented himself in court using what a federal judge described as “bulls—” and “gobbledygook” was sentenced Wednesday to seven years in federal prison.
Taylor James Jonathanakis was convicted in November of obstructing official proceedings, assaulting officers and inciting a civil disturbance, as well as four felony charges. Judge Royce Lamberth, who was appointed to the bench by former President Ronald Reagan, said at a hearing Wednesday that he was concerned about Jonatakis’ “lack of remorse” and that Jonatakis might engage in crime if given the chance. violence again.
Noting the letters of support sent to the court by Jonatakis’ friends and family, Lambert noted that Jonatakis is “responsible for his actions” and not his personality. Unfortunately, Lambert said, Jonatakis left his good attributes at home “when he went to the Capitol on January 6.”
As he did during the trial, Jonatakis continued to ignore the merits of the proceedings and instead moved on. sovereign citizen arguments that show he doesn’t think he’s subject to the federal justice system.
“Does this book reflect my repentance of my sins?” Jonatakis asked the judge after his sentencing Wednesday.
Johnatakis told the court his family planned to move to Iowa after Lamberth asked where he wanted to spend his term. The Federal Bureau of Prisons ultimately decides where Jonatakis will serve his sentence.
“I respect what you’ve done for this country,” Johnatakis said after Lamberth noted that he and Johnatakis had an “interesting relationship” over the course of his work. Dressed in a prison jumpsuit, he kissed family members, said goodbye and gave a thumbs-up before being taken back to serve his sentence.
Lamberth earlier this year he said he was “shocked” by the “mainstreaming of baseless justifications for criminal activity” with Republican politicians defending the actions of the January 6 rioters.
“I am horrified to see the distortions and outright lies seeping into the public consciousness,” Lambert said. “The court fears that this kind of destructive, misguided rhetoric could pose a greater threat to our country.”
There were federal prosecutors he asked for nine years In federal prison for Jonatakis, he said he was “equipped to organize a riot with a megaphone strapped to his back and carried a load up the southwest steps of the US Capitol” and “coordinated a violent attack on defending police officers.” The US Capitol.”
Jonatakis himself participated in the attack, prosecutors said in the video, in which he “used a metal barricade to attack officers head-on and grabbed an officer to prevent him from defending himself against other attacking rioters, causing physical injury to that officer.”
Before the attack, Jonatakis wrote that he was going to Washington to “CHANGE the course of HISTORY #stopstealing” and that “nothing like what the British did to DC will happen…”.
After yelling into his megaphone that then-Vice President Mike Pence was a “traitor to this nation,” Jonatakis chased the officers down the stairs and launched a raid on law enforcement.
More than 1,350 people were charged in connection with the attack on the US Capitol, and more than 950 defendants were tried. About 500 people were sentenced to prison terms ranging from a few days 22 years in federal prisonfor a Proud Boy leader convicted of a seditious conspiracy.