Topline
Former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio will be sentenced Tuesday, four months after he and three other members of the far-right group were convicted of seditious conspiracy and other charges for their involvement in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
The Justice Department has requested a 33-year sentence for Enrique Tarrio for his involvement in … [+] the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
Key Facts
Tarrio will be sentenced by Judge Timothy Kelly.
The Justice Department requested a 33-year sentence for Tarrio, after prosecutors said Tarrio and three other Proud Boys “unleashed a force on the Capitol that was calculated to exert their political will on elected officials by force and to undo the results of a democratic election.”
Attorneys representing Tarrio argued for a lesser sentence, suggesting Tarrio had cooperated with law enforcement for several undercover drug investigations after he was convicted of fraud in 2012 and that his mental health has suffered while in jail.
Kelly has given multi-year prison terms to some of the other convicted Proud Boys, but has typically sentenced them to less time than the government requested.
Tarrio’s sentence hearing was initially scheduled for August 30, but was later rescheduled to September 5 because Kelly was at home sick.
Surprising Fact
A 33-year sentence would be the longest punishment given to anyone charged in the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Ethan Nordean, a former leader of the Proud Boys, was sentenced to 18 years last week, tied for the longest sentence given so far. Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes was also sentenced to 18 years. The second-longest Capitol riot punishment was given to Joseph Biggs—another Proud Boys leader—last week, after Biggs was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Tarrio is the last Proud Boy to be sentenced, after Zachary Rehl and Domenic Pezzola were sentenced to 15 and 10 years in prison, respectively.
Tangent
Tarrio and three other Proud Boys members—Biggs, Nordean and Rehl—were convicted of seditious conspiracy in May following a monthslong trial that included several hurdles, while Pezzola was acquitted of seditious conspiracy but found guilty of obstruction of an official proceeding and conspiracy to prevent federal officers from doing their duties. During the trial, one juror indicated that someone had approached her to ask if she was a juror, though other jurors speculated whether she was telling the truth. Some jurors also suggested that they had been “accosted” during the trial, according to CNN.
Key Background
Tarrio and four other Proud Boys were charged by the Justice Department in June 2022 for their involvement in the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Tarrio wasn’t present at the riot due to an arrest two days earlier, but prosecutors say he organized and directed the attack on the Capitol, citing messages between Tarrio and other Proud Boys that suggested the group would keep Trump in power “by any means necessary, including force.” Prosecutors argued Tarrio and the four members claimed credit for the attack, including a video shared by Biggs to other members in which he said: “We’ve just taken the Capitol.” Tarrio’s attorneys argue he was used as a “scapegoat for Donald J. Trump and those in power,” according to his attorneys. The Proud Boys were formed in 2016 by Vice cofounder Gavin McInnis, who said the all-male group was a club for “Western Chauvinists.” The far-right group’s members have been tied to street brawls and face-offs with left-leaning protestors. Trump referenced the group during a debate in September 2020, when he said the Proud Boys should “stand back and stand by.”
Further Reading
Proud Boy Shouts, ‘Trump Won!’ After Getting 10-Year Prison Sentence For Role In Capitol Riots (Forbes)
Ex-Proud Boys Leader Joseph Biggs Gets 17-Year Prison Sentence For Seditious Conspiracy (Forbes)
Ex-Proud Boys Leader Enrique Tarrio’s Sentencing Rescheduled (Forbes)
