First public plea deal struck by Capitol rioter, who agrees to cooperate and to reported guideline range of 41 to 51 months in prison
As reported in this Fox News piece, headlined “Capitol rioter takes first public plea deal, agrees to cooperate with authorities: sources,” the first big plea in the Capitol riot cases has been announce by the Justice Department. Here are the basics with a few points highlighted:
An alleged member of the Oath Keepers militia group who was “among the first five or six” rioters to enter the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6 is the first person to agree to take a plea deal, Fox News has learned. Jon Schaffer has also agreed to cooperate against others involved in the riot, officials said.
Speaking in court Friday morning, a federal prosecutor told U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta that Schaffer was “among the first five or six” rioters to enter the Capitol during the Jan. 6 siege. Schaffer is also the frontman of the band Iced Earth. The central Indiana native who was photographed with the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol is accused of spraying police officers with a pepper-based bear spray irritant, the FBI previously said.
He was charged with several felony counts, including engaging in an act of physical violence and knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful entry. Schaffer, 53, pleaded guilty to obstruction of an official proceeding and entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon.
He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted, but Mehta said Friday sentencing guidelines call for 41 to 51 months in prison….
A sentencing hearing date has not yet been set. Schaffer was released and will be allowed some travel for work. He must stay out of Washington, D.C., other than for court-related matters and may not possess any firearms.
I have not yet been able to find a plea agreement or other public document that details how the guideline range of 41 to 51 months was determined. But I still find those numbers interesting, as well as the fact that this defendant, even after pleading guilty, is to be free pending sentencing.
This official DOJ press release, headed “Lifetime Founding Member of the Oath Keepers Pleads Guilty to Breaching Capitol on Jan. 6 to Obstruct Congressional Proceeding,” provide some more context:
Jon Schaffer, 53, of Columbus, Indiana, today admitted that he breached the Capitol on January 6, 2021, wearing a tactical vest and armed with bear repellent, and pleaded guilty to unlawfully entering the U.S. Capitol to obstruct Congress’ certification of the U.S. presidential election results.
“On this 100th day since the horrific January 6 assault on the United States Capitol, Oath Keepers member Jon Schaffer has pleaded guilty to multiple felonies, including for breaching the Capitol while wearing a tactical vest and armed with bear spray, with the intent to interfere with Congress’ certification of the Electoral College results,” said Acting Deputy Attorney General John P. Carlin. “The FBI has made an average of more than four arrests a day, seven days a week since January 6th. I commend the hundreds of special agents, prosecutors and support staff that have worked tirelessly for the last hundred days to bring those who committed criminal acts to justice.”
“The defendant in this case admits forcing his way into the U.S. Capitol on January 6 for the express purpose of stopping or delaying congressional proceedings essential to our democratic process. These actions are disgraceful and unacceptable” said FBI Deputy Director Paul M. Abbate. “The FBI and our partners will continue to utilize all available authorities to aggressively investigate, pursue and hold accountable those who committed acts of violence or otherwise violated the rule of law that day.”…
Schaffer pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging him with obstruction of an official proceeding and entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon. Combined, he faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted. The Honorable Amit P. Mehta accepted Schaffer’s guilty plea.
A few prior related post:
- “Many Capitol rioters unlikely to serve jail time” because some facing only misdemeanor convictions
- Noting the importance of charging policies and practices (and consistency?) as federal rioting charges get resolved from coast-to-coast
UPDATE: A helpful colleague got me a copy of the plea agreement, which can now be downloaded here: