Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to send James Ray Epps Sr. to jail for six months when he appears for sentencing Jan. 9 on one count of disorderly or disruptive conduct at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“Although Epps engaged in felonious conduct during the riot on January 6, his case includes a variety of distinctive and compelling mitigating factors, which led the government to exercise its prosecutorial discretion and offer Epps a pre-indictment misdemeanor plea resolution,” DOJ senior trial counsel Michael Gordon wrote in the sentencing memo.
He blamed “right-wing political dramaturges” for Mr. Epps being “attacked, defamed, and vilified.”
Under a list of mitigating factors, Mr. Gordon asserted that Mr. Epps “has been the target of a false and widespread conspiracy theory that he was an undercover government agent on January 6.”
Other mitigating factors cited by Mr. Gordon included Mr. Epps calling the FBI on Jan. 8, 2021, to describe his actions two days prior, his cooperation with the FBI and the now-defunct House Jan. 6 Select Committee, and what the DOJ official describes as his efforts to de-escalate tensions between angry protesters and police.
A jail sentence is appropriate because of Mr. Epps’ efforts “to inspire and gather a crowd to storm the Capitol to protest the certification of the election,” Mr. Gordon wrote.
FBI’s Most Wanted
His photograph was removed from the FBI’s Jan. 6 most-wanted page without explanation, fueling the fire of debate on why he hadn’t faced arrest or prosecution.Sentencing in the case had been scheduled for Dec. 20, 2023, but Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg granted a continuance until 10 a.m. Jan. 9 at the federal courthouse in Washington D.C.
In his sentencing memo, Mr. Ungvarsky said Mr. Epps’ intention all along was for peaceful protests at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
“Ray Epps understands the serious mistake he made when he joined others to attend the Stop the Steal Rally on January 6, 2021, and to encourage others to walk to the U.S. Capitol to continue to protest,” Mr. Ungvarsky wrote.
“At all times, Mr. Epps’ intent was that the protest would be peaceful and would be done peacefully,” Mr. Ungvarsky said. “Those were his words on January 5, and that was his intent on January 6.”
“For safety concerns, counsel has redacted the names and identifying information of persons who authored or are discussed in exhibits of sentencing letters and memoranda,” Mr. Ungvarsky wrote. “Documented prior harassment and threats provide a specific basis for this request in this case.”
