A member of the far-right Three Percenters militia was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for his role in the January 6 riot at the Capitol Building – the longest sentence yet for any of the insurrectionists.
Guy Reffitt, 49, of Wylie, Texas, was convicted by a jury in March of five felony charges, including bringing a gun onto the Capitol grounds and obstructing an official proceeding.
He had threatened to harm his own children if they ratted him out to the FBI.
‘He said, ‘If you turn me in, you’re a traitor,” his son, Jackson Reffitt told jurors. ”And traitors get shot.’
Federal guidelines recommend a prison sentence of 9 to 11.25 years for those crimes, prosecutors say.
Reffitt never entered the Capitol, but video evidence showed him egging on the crowd and leading other rioters up a set of stairs outside the building.
He was heard on his GoPo camera recording saying he planned to drag House Speaker Nancy Pelosi out by her feet ‘with her head hitting every step on the way down,’ according to a copy of the recording submitted at trial.
Guy Reffitt, 49, was sentenced to 7.25 years in federal prison after he was convicted in March on five counts, including bring a weapon to the Capitol grounds and disrupting an official proceeding
Reffitt, of Wylie, Texas, seen here during the riot carrying a Smith & Wesson pistol and black hand-ties
Guy Reffitt (pictured at the Capitol), 48, of Texas, who was arrested in connection to the riot at the Capitol earlier this month, allegedly threatened to shoot his children if they became ‘traitors’ and turned him in to the FBI
Jackson Reffitt, pictured, alerted the FBI to his dad’s alleged role in the Capitol riots
Guy Reffitt’s wife, Nicole (C), with her daughters Sara (L), and Peyton (R), depart the federal court house in Washington, DC, on Monday after husband’s conviction
Reffitt was brought to tears as his son told the jury about how his father threatened him if he dared to call the FBI.
Later, Jackson Reffitt told The New York Times that he felt bad for turning his father in, but he doesn’t regret it.
‘I would say I’m sorry, because I don’t feel like I put him in this situation, but I still feel guilty. I would do it again,’ Jackson told the paper.
Guy Reffitt, right, with his wife Nicole beside him. His son Jackson, center, turned him into the FBI after the January 6 riot on the Capitol Building. His daughters Sara and Peyton (far right) have stood by him through out the trial.
Guy Reffitt, far right, with his wife, Nicole, center, and three children who are all adults now
Still, his family stuck by his side after turning him in.
The insurrectionist’s wife Nicole Reffitt said that she didn’t think her husband would act on his statements, but said that the family was ‘disturbed’ by the comments.
His family set up a crowdfunding page on GiveSendGo asking for donations for his defense.
‘Guy stood on the stairs of our Capitol that day not to cause terror, but to stand up to the corruption and evil that has eroded our government. You, the American people, have supported the Reffitts through some of the darkest days this family has endured, and I am now asking for a rally,’ Nicole Reffitt wrote.
After the sentencing, Nicole Reffitt defended her husband, calling him a ‘patriot’ and saying the trial was ‘political,’ according to CBS reporter Rob Legare.
Reffitt was the first Capitol rioter to go to trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
He was caught on camera with a Smith & Wesson pistol in a hip holster. He also carried zip-tie handcuffs
To date, federal prosecutors have prevailed and won convictions in all but one of 13 trials tied to the Capitol attack.
Reffitt’s (far right) trial was seen as an important test case as the U.S. Justice Department attempts to secure convictions from the hundreds of defendants who have not taken plea deals
Reffitt’s lawyer, William Welch (pictured along Reffit in a courtroom sketch dated February 28, 2022) told jurors during opening statements that his client was one for dramatics: ‘He exaggerates and he rants. This trial will be about fact versus hype’
Reffitt’s wife told officials that Reffitt (pictured in blue with a helmet at the Capitol) was arguing about the incident with his son and daughter when he told them: ‘If you turn me in, you’re a traitor and you know what happens to traitors. … Traitors get shot’
Supporters loyal to President Donald Trump clash with authorities before successfully breaching the Capitol building during a riot on the grounds on January 6
Pro-Trump protesters storm into the U.S. Capitol during clashes with police, during a rally to contest the certification of presidential election results by on January 6
Federal prosecutors had asked U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich to sentence Reffitt to 15 years, more than the U.S. sentencing guidelines recommend, citing Reffitt’s crime as being ‘calculated to influence or affect the conduct of government by intimidation or coercion.’
But on Monday, as the sentencing stretched into its fifth hour, the judge rejected the federal prosecutors’ arguments.
‘There are a lot of cases where defendants possessed weapons or committed very violent assaults,’ Politico reported the judge saying. Friedrich noted that the harshest sentences so far have been for little more than five years.
‘The government is asking for a sentence that is three times as long as any other defendant and the defendant did not assault an officer,’ according to Politico’s coverage.
Reffitt’s attorney has sought to portray him as man who felt marginalized and down on his luck after losing his job in 2019.
Depressed and suicidal, his attorney said he turned to political news on social media and became a fervent believer in former President Donald Trump.
His daughter Peyton told the court in a letter she could see how her father’s ego and personality ‘fell to his knees when President Trump spoke.’
‘You could tell he listened to Trump’s words as if he was really truly speaking to him … Constantly feeding polarizing racial thought.’
His attorney F. Clinton Broden said that while his client broke the law, his actions were not as egregious as those of others who entered the Capitol and assaulted police.
He noted that Reffitt will get credit for the 19 months he has already spent behind bars since his arrest, and has asked the judge to impose a sentence of no more than two years.
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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk