Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Sunday, Mar 26, 2023

A Florida man supported Obama and didn't vote for Trump. Then he stormed the Capitol, pepper-sprayed cops, broke a $2,900 window, and got 4.5 years in prison.

A Florida man supported Obama and didn't vote for Trump. Then he stormed the Capitol, pepper-sprayed cops, broke a $2,900 window, and got 4.5 years in prison.

Mitchell Todd Gardner "slowly started to believe" that the election had been stolen from Trump, his attorneys said.
A federal judge sentenced a Florida man who voted for Obama twice and did not vote for Trump in 2016 to 4.5 years in prison for his participation in the January 6 insurrection.

Judge Amit Mehta sentenced Mitchell Todd Gardner II, 34, of Seffner, Florida, to 55 months in federal prison on Friday in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

Mehta also ordered Gardner to pay $3,500 in restitution and to stay under supervised release for 36 months after he leaves prison.

Prosecutors charged Gardner with obstructing an official proceeding, knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building, and assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers with a dangerous weapon, according to a criminal complaint.

Attorneys for Gardner argued in a sentencing memorandum filed on March 3 that he grew up in a red state, which explains the "huge discrepancy between his life and nonviolent choices otherwise, and his behavior the day of January 6." Gardner's attorneys said he voted for Obama "both times" and "did not vote for Donald Trump when he ran for office."

It's unclear if Gardner voted for Donald Trump in the 2020 election. Farheena Siddiqui, Gardner's attorney, did not immediately return Insider's request for comment on Sunday.

"He believed President Trump's candidacy to be a joke, a publicity event for a celebrity," the sentencing memorandum states.

After President Joe Biden was announced as the winner of the 2020 presidential election, Trump's misinformation caused Gardner to believe "that the election had been stolen and the way of life in America was about to change," the document says.

Gardner had never been politically active before 2020, but during Trump's presidency he "flourished financially," which led him to believe the misinformation that Trump was spreading, his attorneys said.

According to the DOJ, Gardner sprayed Capitol Police officers with a Metropolitan Police Department pepper spray canister in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel of the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

"The contents hit one officer directly in the face shield and splattered onto at least two additional officers," the DOJ said in the release. "This caused the officers to cough for an extended period and also burned their eyes."

Gardner also used the pepper spray canister to smash a window into the Senate Terrace Room which cost $2,900 to replace, according to the DOJ. After entering the window, Gardner handed another rioter a wooden table leg that they used to attack police, the release says.

On Saturday, Trump called on his supporter to "protest" and "take our nation back" in a post on Truth Social after he predicted his own potential indictment before a New York grand jury. The language was reminiscent of his December 2020 tweet that asked his followers to converge on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

So far, police have charged at least 1,003 people with crimes in connection to the Capitol insurrection. At least 476 Capitol rioters have so far pleaded guilty for their roles.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
Close
0:00
0:00
Powell: Silicon Valley Bank was an 'outlier'
Donald Trump arrested – Twitter goes wild with doctored pictures
Credit Suisse's Scandalous History Resulted in an Obvious Collapse - It's time for regulators who fail to do their job to be held accountable and serve as an example by being behind bars.
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
A brief banking situation report
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
Banking regulators close SVB, the largest bank failure since the financial crisis
Silicon Valley Bank: Struggles Threaten Tech Startup Ecosystem"
The unelected UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, an immigrant himself, defends new controversial crackdown on illegal migration
Man’s penis amputated by mistake after he’s wrongly diagnosed with a tumour
In a major snub to Downing Street's Silicon Valley dreams, UK chip giant Arm has dealt a serious blow to the government's economic strategy by opting for a US listing
It's the question on everyone's lips: could a four-day workweek be the future of employment?
Spain officials quit over trains that were too wide for tunnels...
Corruption and Influence Buying Uncovered in International Mainstream Media: Investigation Reveals Growing Disinformation Mercenaries
European MP Clare Daly condemns US attack on Nord Stream
Tucker Carlson called Trump a 'demonic force'
US Joins 15 NATO Nations in Largest Space Data Collection Initiative in History
White House: No ETs over the United States
Saray Street in Hatay-Antakya before and after the earthquake
U.S. Jet Shoots Down Flying Object Over Canada
Nord Stream terror attack: David Sacks breaks down Sy Hersh's story
Being a Tiktoker might be expensive…
Miracle: El Salvador Search and Rescue teams, with the support of Turkish teams, rescued a woman and a child from the rubble 150 hours after the earthquake
SpaceX, the private space exploration company, made a significant breakthrough in their mission to reach space.
China's top tech firms, including Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, NetEase, and JD.com, are developing their own versions of Open AI's AI-powered chatbot, ChatGPT
This shocking picture, showing how terrible is the results of the earthquake in Turkey
President Joe Biden delivered the 2023 State of the Union Address , in order to help Americans that missed the 2022 speech, do not have internet, and suffer from short memory.
The desk of King Carlos Alberto of Sardinia has many secret compartments
Today's news from Britain - 9th February 2023
The five largest oil companies in the West generated combined profits of nearly $200 billion in 2022, which has led to increased calls for governments to impose tougher windfall taxes
2 earthquakes in Turkey killed over 2,300 people
Powerful Earthquake Strikes Turkey and Syria, Killing More Than 1,300 People.
Turkish photographer Ugur Gallenkus portrays two different worlds within a single image. Brilliant work
Charlie Munger, calls for a ban on cryptocurrencies in the US, following China's lead
Shell reports highest profits in 115 years
EU found a way to use frozen Russian funds
First generation unopened iPhone set to fetch more than $50,000 at auction.
WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT - US Memphis Police murdering innocent Tyre Nichols
Almost 30% of professionals say they've tried ChatGPT at work
Interpol seeks woman who ran elaborate exam cheating scam in Singapore
What is ChatGPT?
Bill Gates is ‘very optimistic’ about the future: ‘Better to be born 20 years from now...than any time in the past’
×