Two More Proud Boys Sentenced Over Jan. 6

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Facts

  • Proud Boys members Joseph Biggs and Zachary Rehl on Thursday were sentenced to 17 years and 15 years in prison, respectively, by US District Judge Timothy Kelly for their role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.1
  • Biggs, who along with three other Proud Boys members was found guilty of seditious conspiracy and other felonies in May, received the second-longest prison sentence handed down to anyone involved in the Capitol riots.2
  • During Biggs’ trial, prosecutors showed evidence he was one of the leaders plotting and stoking violence during the lead-up to the events of that day. However, he was among a leadership group that stood back while others carried out the violence.3
  • Kelly ruled that although Rehl had less of a leadership role, his repeated lying on the stand during his trial contributed to the length of his sentence.3
  • Kelly is scheduled at a later date to sentence three other convicted Proud Boys related to the events of Jan. 6, 2021.4

Sources: 1USA Today, 2Al Jazeera, 3CNN and 4PBS NewsHour.

Narratives

  • Anti-Trump narrative, as provided by NBC. These sentences are appropriate, even if these men were acting on the lies that Trump was feeding them. Biggs and Rehl were still responsible for violent acts that harmed an important American democratic process — the peaceful transfer of power. In addition to the damage done on Jan. 6, the future will feature fears surrounding polling places and inaugurations because of what happened.
  • Pro-Trump narrative, as provided by Breitbart. In this case, the judge applied a 'terrorism enhancement' to Biggs for his actions to destroy a fence on Jan. 6. Biggs was deeply apologetic for his actions and the judge even said the sentence doesn't reflect that he's actually a terrorist. Nonetheless, the woke Left media ecosystem won't emphasize this important context when they frame what actually happened on that day.