An eight-year prison sentence is being recommended for an off-duty Virginia police officer who was convicted of storming the U.S. Capitol to obstruct Congress.
Prosecutors said in a court filing that Thomas Robertson used his training to block police officers who were trying to protect the Capitol from a mob.
He tried to overthrow the government instead of promoting the public good.
The longest prison sentence for a Capitol riot case was eight years. Guy Reffitt was sentenced to seven years and three months for attacking the Capitol with a handgun.
Robertson is scheduled to be sentenced next week. Robertson should be sentenced to three years of supervised release after he is released from prison, according to prosecutors.
The sentencing guidelines range from 27 to 33 months of imprisonment. Cooper doesn't have to follow any of the estimates or recommendations of the prosecutors.
Robertson didn't testify at his trial before a jury convicted him of all six counts in his indictment, including charges that he interfered with police officers at the Capitol and that he entered a restricted area with a dangerous weapon.
Robertson was shot in the thigh while working for the U.S. Defense Department in Afghanistan in 2011.
Prosecutors accused Robertson of lying about his military service. Robertson's military records don't support his claim that he graduated from the U.S. Army Ranger school. Robertson lied to a reporter when he said he received a purple heart.
The second Capitol riot case was tried by a jury. The first one was Reffitt's. Seven riot defendants were found guilty of all charges by a jury.
Robertson went to Washington, D.C. on the morning of January 6 with a co-worker and a neighbor. Fracker was an off-duty cop. Before he pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge, he was going to be tried with Robertson.
Fracker testified at Robertson's trial that when he entered the Capitol building, he thought he was just going to be a guest. He pleaded guilty to obstructing Congress.
Robertson broke the law when he entered the Capitol during the riot. Robertson was acquitted of felony charges, but they encouraged jurors to convict him of lesser crimes.
Some of Robertson's posts were seen by jurors before and after the Capitol riot. Being disenfranchised by fraud is Robertson's hard line.
I have fought a counter insurgency for most of my life. He said he was about to become part of one and an effective one.
Robertson wrote to the judge that he takes full responsibility for his actions on January 6. He blamed the content of his social media posts on stress, alcohol abuse and "submersion in deep "rabbit holes" of election conspiracy theory."
He wrote that he sat around at night drinking too much and reacting to articles on Facebook.
Robertson and Fracker were terminated by the town. The town of Rocky Mount has 5000 residents.
Last year, Cooper ruled that Robertson violated the terms of his release by having firearms.
More than 800 people have been charged with federal crimes. Over 350 of them have pleaded guilty and over 220 have been sentenced.
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