Nov 18, 2022 - Politics & Policy

Man who blamed Trump for Jan. 6 riots sentenced to prison

Herb Scribner

Demonstrators swarm the U.S. Capitol building during a protest in Washington, D.C. Photo: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images

An Ohio man who said President Trump gave "presidential orders" to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 has been sentenced to three years in prison, the Department of Justice announced Friday.

Why it matters: Dustin Byron Thompson, who was convicted in April, was among the first Capitol riot defendants to argue that Trump is ultimately to blame for the large mob that breached the Capitol.

Driving the news: Thompson was sentenced to 36 months in prison by a federal judge, per the AP.

He was found guilty of obstructing Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s presidential victory, as well as five other charges.

Zoom in: According to the DOJ, Thompson entered the Capitol building and stole a bottle of bourbon from the Senate Parliamentarian’s Office.

After officers directed him out, he went back in with a co-defendant, Robert Anthony Lyon. Thompson stole a coat rack and told Lyon they needed to leave with "this trophy," the DOJ said.

The big picture: Since the Jan. 6 riots, about 900 people have been arrested for crimes related to the Capitol breach, according to the DOJ. More than 275 individuals have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

Trump's role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots has been the subject of scrutiny by lawmakers, with the Jan. 6 committee building a case that the former president instigated the deadly riot.

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Man who blamed Trump for Jan. 6 riots sentenced to prison

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