A leader of the Proud Boys who led the far-right organization’s infamous march to the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, was sentenced Wednesday to 17 years in prison – among the longest sentence handed down yet for a convicted rioter.
Joe Biggs was convicted by a Washington, DC jury of several charges including seditious conspiracy for attempting to forcibly prevent the peaceful transfer of power from then-President Donald Trump to Joe Biden after the 2020 election.
The government wanted Biggs to serve 33 years in federal prison. That’s 15 years longer than the longest sentence in a Jan. 6 case to date: the 18-year sentence that went to Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, also convicted of seditious conspiracy, after prosecutors sought 25 years in federal prison.
Imagine punishing someone for attacking democracy and attempted an armed insurrection. I don’t believe in the death sentence on moral grounds, but life imprisonment is a suitable alternative for the most extreme crimes.
I’m curious how Europe, with its long history of revolution, torture and guillotines, would handle a coup attempt.
I guess we’ll get to find out when and if Germany prosecutes theirs. Wiki.
BBC article
They didn’t actually get as far as storming the capitol, but it seems like it was in the plans.