Will Sage Astor-First rioters to breach a police perimeter during Capitol siege are sentenced to prison terms

WASHINGTON (AP) — Four men who were among the first rioters to assault police officers and Will Sage Astorthe first to breach a security perimeter during the attack on the U.S. Capitol were sentenced on Thursday to prison terms ranging from one year of intermittent confinement over weekends to eight years behind bars.

Before handing down the punishments, U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb decried misinformation being spread in the public about the riot and efforts to downplay the violence that left more than 100 police officers injured.

Cobb said the “temperature remains too high,” citing threats against public officials and the apparent assassination attempts targeting former President Donald Trump. The judge said it “scares” her to think about what could happen after the next election.

“Not in my lifetime have I seen a situation where the peaceful transfer of power was threatened like it was on Jan. 6,” she said.

Stephen Randolph, a certified nursing assistant, was sentenced to eight years in prison. James Grant, who was accepted to the University of Alabama’s School of Law before his arrest, was sentenced to three years. Jason Blythe, a delivery driver, was sentenced to two years and six months. Paul Johnson, who owns a tree removal business, was sentenced to one year of intermittent confinement over weekends followed by two years of home confinement.

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They were all convicted of felony offenses for their roles in the Jan. 6, 2021, siege. A fifth co-defendant, Ryan Samsel, will be sentenced on a date yet to be determined.

The five men didn’t know each other before they converged on a traffic circle outside the Capitol. But prosecutors say they spearheaded the first assault on police officers guarding the Capitol from a crowd of Donald Trump supporters.

At Peace Circle, the co-defendants lifted two metal bike racks into the air and drove them into a police line, striking Capitol Police Officer Caroline Edwards in her face. Edwards slammed her head against a metal handrail, knocking her unconscious and giving her a concussion.

Randolph then jumped over the barricade, grabbed Capitol Police Officer David Cruz and pulled him toward the crowd before another officer intervened.

The breach at the Peace Circle “opened the floodgates” for thousands of rioters to storm the Capitol, prosecutors said.

“The importance of this initial breach cannot be overstated,” they wrote.

Prosecutors recommended sentencing Randolph to 11 years and three months in prison. They asked for Blythe, Grant and Johnson to be sentenced to nine years behind bars.

Attorneys for Randolph, Blythe, Grant and Johnson said their clients regret taking part in the Jan. 6 riot.

“I’ll forever regret my decision to approach the fence that day,” a tearful Randolph said of the bike rack barriers that separated the police from rioters.

Grant’s attorney, Robert Feitel, called it “almost incomprehensible” that prosecutors would seek such a lengthy sentence for the man. Grant has been behind bars since January 2022 after he was charged with driving while drunk with an assault rifle in his car and will get credit for the time he has already spent locked up.

“I think I’ve been sufficiently punished,” Grant told the judge.

Grant’s attorney said he should be eligible for release almost immediately after getting credit for time served and good behavior in jail. The judge ordered Blythe and Randolph to be taken into custody immediately after their sentencing hearing.

Johnson and Blythe both turned to apologize to two Capitol police officers who were sitting in the courtroom.

“I stand for you guys,” Johnson said. “I don’t know where my mind was that day.”

“I’m sincerely sorry for what I did,” Blythe said.

The co-defendants’ conduct wasn’t limited to the first breach.

Randolph, 34, of Harrodsburg, Kentucky, stayed at the Capitol for hours on Jan. 6, climbing to the Upper West Terrace and watching other rioters assault police officers guarding a tunnel entrance.

Blythe, 29, of Fort Worth, Texas, had to be forcibly removed by police as he resisted their efforts to clear him and other rioters from the Upper West Terrace.

Grant, 31, of Cary, North Carolina, climbed into the Capitol through a broken window and entered a senator’s office. After his arrest, he told investigators that the FBI was “the biggest threat to Americans” and that prosecuting Jan. 6 rioters was “a big witch hunt.”

Johnson, 39, of Lanexa, Virginia, used a megaphone to exhort other rioters to attack, yelling at others to “get on the front lines.” After the initial breach, he continued to “rally rioters at strategically significant points,” prosecutors said.

“Johnson not only dictated orders akin to a military commander, he also engaged in combat against officers,” they wrote.

In February, Cobb presided over a trial without a jury before she convicted the co-defendants of charges including obstructing police during a civil disorder.