Two Jan. 6 defendants who pleaded guilty to illegal parading or picketing at the U.S. Capitol were each sentenced Thursday to 36 months probation, a length of time the judge said was designed to last through the next two election cycles to deter “political violence.”
Judge Beryl Howell, chief judge of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was critical of prosecutors for repeatedly making plea agreements using the misdemeanor charge of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building. She said the charge in essence makes light of Jan. 6.
