The United States Department of Justice is asking for a 17.5-year prison sentence for former New York Police Department Officer Thomas Webster, who was convicted in May of assaulting a police officer during the attack.
"Webster, 56, of Goshen, N.Y., assaulted D.C. police officer Noah Rathbun with an aluminum Marine Corps flagpole, jurors found. The panel of eight women and four men also found Webster guilty of interfering with police in a riot and trespassing, disorderly conduct and violent conduct while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon on Capitol grounds," The Washington Post reported on May 2. "Webster, who previously served on the protective security detail of former New York mayor Mike Bloomberg, was the first of about 150 defendants charged with assaulting an officer to take his case to a jury and the first to argue self-defense."
Webster's lawyer had complained the victim was "mocking" the rioters and his legal team said he did not deserve to be incarcerated with people who committed "inner-city crimes."
"DOJ seeking 210 month (17.5 year) sentence — which would be by far the longest — for Jan. 6 defendant Thomas Webster, a former NYPD officer convicted of assaulted a cop at the Capitol," Politico's Kyle Cheney reported.
The previous record was set by Texan Guy Reffitt earlier in the month. Reffitt was sentenced to seven years and three months in federal prison.
Watch DOJ video of Webster on Jan. 6:
NEW: Justice Dept. just released horrifying new footage from 1/6. Feds say this is ex-NYPD officer Thomas Webster (red jacket) wielding a flagpole, rushing at police & tackling a cop to the ground. DOJ released this after legal action by CNN and other outlets. (warning: explicit) pic.twitter.com/yf7DQQFMWr
— Marshall Cohen (@MarshallCohen) June 17, 2021
