January 6 Rioter From Maryland Sentenced to Five Months in Prison

© AP Photo / John MinchilloProtesters, loyal to President Donald Trump, storm the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021.
Protesters, loyal to President Donald Trump, storm the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 15.07.2022
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On Thursday, David Alan Blair, 27, was sentenced to five months in prison for his involvement in the US Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. Blair was also sentenced to 18 months of federal supervised release following his 5-month prison sentence and will be required to pay $2,000 in restitution.
The 27-year-old man from Clarksburg, Maryland, was charged with interfering with law enforcement during a civil disorder, to which he pleaded guilty.
Blair left his home in Clarksburg, Maryland, and drove to Washington, D.C. to join the January 6 Capitol riot, which was ongoing. He arrived at the riot wearing a skull-themed neck gaiter and Oakley gloves and carrying a makeshift Confederate flag that he had attached to a lacrosse stick. He was also armed with a serrated knife and a roll of duct tape.
At one point during the riot, Blair shoved a police officer with the lacrosse stick after refusing to leave the U.S. Capitol West Lawn. The officer, who Blair shoved, responded by hitting him three times on his head with a police baton. Blair’s attorney claimed the officer’s use of force left the Maryland resident bleeding and concussed.
Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wy., delivers opening remarks at the first hearing of the House select committee hearing on the Jan. 6 attack on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, July 27, 2021. - Sputnik International, 1920, 04.07.2022
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Obstructing law enforcement “in the commission of their duties during a civil disorder” is a statute that was first written into law in 1968 following civil rights and anti-war protests. That statute is a felony offense and carries with it a five year prison sentence. For Blair, prosecutors were originally seeking eight months in prison with 18 months of supervised release following his prison sentence.
According to a U.S. court filing, Blair told investigators that he had joined the Capitol riot not to protest the results of the 2020 election—which saw former President Donald Trump lose to President Joe Biden—but because he believed the United States was “falling apart” and that he had to “stand up” to Communism and “fight Antifa” (a post-World War II political protest group fighting fascism and racism).
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Liebman also wrote in that same court filing that Blair had spoken with a person over social media in the year leading up to the Capitol attack, and that in these discussions he and this individual exchanged anti-Semitic viewpoints, blaming Israel for various global issues while claiming that “bankers” were “running the country” and the world.
Thus far at least 876 people have been charged in the Capitol riots, according to an Insider article. A U.S. House Select Committee has been investigating the January 6th attack. It has been suggested that Donald Trump has attempted to tamper with the investigation by contacting individuals who have been subpoenaed by the committee.
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