[ad_1]
A suburban Dallas realtor who posted her participation in the Jan.6 riot at the U.S. Capitol on social media and then bragged about her not going to jail because she is white, has blond hair and a good job was sentenced Thursday to two months behind bars.
While some rioters convicted of the same misdemeanor were only given probation or house arrest, prosecutors requested the incarceration of Jennifer Leigh Ryan of Frisco, Texas, saying she had demonstrated a lack of candor and remorse for his actions when the pro-Trump mob attacked the Capitol Building and Congress-delayed certification of Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory.
They also said Ryan’s belief that she was safe from penalties shows that she fails to understand the gravity of her crime.
Ryan was not facing a more serious driving felony, but U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper said she was still part of the crowd that outnumbered police in an attack that resulted in the death of five people and that will have a lasting effect on government institutions.
Although Ryan said she was sorry for her actions, Cooper asked if she had any remorse and was following the law.
“Your actions since January 6 make me doubt some of these things,” the judge said.
Prosecutors said Ryan flew to Washington on a jet chartered by a Facebook friend, described Trump’s pre-riot rally as a prelude to war, live streamed his entry into the building as the alarms rang, took part in chants of “Fight For Trump,” tweeted a photo of herself next to shattered windows outside the Capitol and later said she deserved a medal for it. that she did.
Her lawyer replied that she had only been in the building for two minutes, that she had not acted violently and that she had the right to express herself on social media.
The judge then referred to Ryan’s March 26 tweet in which she wrote, “I definitely won’t go to jail. Sorry, I have blonde hair, white skin, a great job, a bright future, and I’m not going to jail. Sorry to rain on your hate parade. I did nothing wrong.”
In a letter to the judge, Ryan denied believing she was immune from punishment, saying she responded to people who made fun of her appearance and called for her imprisonment. She said her lawyer told her at the time that prosecutors would recommend probation.
“I was attacked and I was responding to them,†Ryan said in court.
She is the 10th person accused in the January 6 attack to receive a prison or jail sentence. More than 650 people have been indicted for their actions on Capitol Hill.
Prosecutors said Ryan had since downplayed the violence on Capitol Hill and falsely claimed to probation authorities that she didn’t know there was a riot until she came to Capitol Hill, even though she did. was recorded in a hotel room watching media coverage of the rising rioters. the walls of the Capitol.
After the riot, Ryan said she faced a backlash that included death threats, public heckling and graffiti painted on her real estate signs. She said she had to change her name and dress up in public.
Ryan tweeted a photo of herself next to broken windows and holding her fingers in a V sign, with a caption saying, “Window to the Capital. And if the news keeps lying about us, we s ‘will then attack their studios… â€
Shortly after, Ryan posted another tweet about a mob damaging material belonging to news outlets, including the Associated Press. She tweeted that it was a “cool moment” when the rioters “came to town with the AP equipment.”
Ryan is expected to start serving his sentence in January.
Also on Thursday, a Maryland woman who joined the mob attack was sentenced to three years of probation, including two months of house arrest.
Brittiany Angelina Dillon said her actions on Capitol Hill were “inexcusable and unacceptable”. She called January 6 the worst day of her life.
“I never want to set foot in Washington, DC again, and I love this city,†she said. “I don’t want to think about that day. It’s horrible.”
Judge Dabney Friedrich said the texts showed Dillon clearly anticipated the violence when she visited Washington on Jan.6 and appeared willing to do her part to prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s victory.
The judge said she was troubled by Dillon’s statements before and after the riot, including his reference to law enforcement officials as “devils.”
“The attack in which she participated was an attack on our government institutions, the rule of law and our democratic process,” Friedrich said.
According to prosecutors, Dillon walked through a crowd of rioters to approach an entrance to the Capitol, but was pushed back before she could pass the building’s threshold.
She has not been charged with violence or damage to property. Dillion pleaded guilty in July to disorderly conduct in a Capitol building. _____ Billeaud reported from Phoenix and Kunzelman of College Park, Maryland.
[ad_2]
