Judge Slaps Jan. 6 Rioter With 5 Years In Prison Plus the Biggest Financial Penalty For Capitol Riot Crime

Ryan T. Nichols, who pleaded guilty to “obstruction of an official proceeding and assault on law enforcement,” was sentenced to five years in prison on Thursday and ordered to pay a whopping $200,000 fine, the largest fine ever imposed on anyone charged with crimes related to the January 6 riot.

The harsh financial penalty from Senior U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth came as a consequence for Nichols apparently refusing to cooperate with his probation officers concerning his financial status. The $200,000 amount is the maximum penalty under the sentencing guidelines.

According to the Washington Post, Nichols’ defense attorneys stated that their client had a host of mental health problems including PTSD and he expressed remorse for his actions in court.

Nichols stood and apologized to “the victims of Jan. 6,” including members of Congress, police officers and D.C. residents. “My actions and words that day were heinous, disgusting and awful.” He said he had stopped taking his medication for PTSD during the 2020 election season, causing him to act irrationally.

“I’m no longer a danger to society,” Nichols said. “I’m on my meds and will never be off them again. I know what I said, but I want to assure you I do not stand for violence.”

Lamberth said that he found Nichols to be sincere, but added that he also witnessed defendants express remorse in court only to claim to be “political prisoners” once they leave.

The Washington Post described Nichols’ actions in the days leading up to January 6 and what happened that day:

Nichols wrote on Facebook before Jan. 6, 2021, that he was “bringing the wrath of God, and there’s not a — thing you can do to stop it,” and, “If [former Vice President Mike Pence] doesn’t do the right thing, WE FIGHT.” Prosecutors said he showed up to the Capitol wearing a ballistic chest plate and other tactical gear and wielding a crowbar. He pushed to the front of the mob at the Lower West Terrace, hit multiple officers in the tunnel with two streams of pepper spray from a stolen police canister, then entered the Capitol and used a bullhorn to exhort the crowd to get their weapons ready to fight the police.

After Nichols left the Capitol, he posted a video of himself in his hotel room, saying: “I’m calling for violence! And I will be violent!” Nichols ended the video by stating: “I will … die for this. But before I do that, I plan on making other people die first, for their country, if it gets down to that.”

Nichols, who is from Texas, also reportedly brought two guns to his hotel with him. He said in a 2021 letter to a different judge: “I went to Washington, D.C., because I believed that is what [former President Donald Trump] asked us to do.”

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