WASHINGTON – The pass judgement on overseeing former President Donald Trump’s election interference case rejected the perception Wednesday that jailed defendants charged with one of the most maximum violent crimes of the U.S. Capitol rebel are “hostages” — a label Trump and his allies have regularly used to explain the prisoners.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan stated the Capitol rebel defendants who stay jailed in Washington, D.C., do not need to be referred to as hostages or heroes for their movements throughout the mob’s assault on Jan. 6, 2021.
“They’re being kept there because they are dangerous people,” Chutkan stated throughout a sentencing listening to for Antony Vo, a person convicted of storming the Capitol along with his mom.
During his trial, Vo attended a nightly vigil that supporters of Jan. 6 rebel defendants hang outdoor the Washington prison. The pass judgement on in the past dominated that Vo’s attendance on the vigil violated a situation of his liberate.
Chutkan rolled her eyes and shook her head when she realized from a prosecutor throughout Wednesday’s listening to that the vigil’s organizers seek advice from their accumulating spot outdoor the prison as “Freedom Corner.”
“Is that what’s it’s called? Freedom Corner?” the pass judgement on requested, sounding incredulous.
At a November 2023 marketing campaign tournament in Houston, Trump referred to the jailed rebel defendants as “J6 hostages, not prisoners.” Trump campaign rallies have started with a recording of jailed Capitol riot defendants singing the national anthem. In June 2023, Trump spoke at a fundraiser benefiting Jan. 6 defendants.
“I’m gonna make a contribution,” Trump stated. “There have been few people that have been treated in the history of our country like the people that you love, like the people that have gone through so much.”
Trump’s trial in Washington for the election interference case was scheduled to start March 4, but Chutkan agreed to place the case on hold while the former president pursues his claims that he is immune from prosecution. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments for Trump’s appeal later this month.
Chutkan didn’t mention Trump’s name during Wednesday’s hearing, where she sentenced Vo to nine months of imprisonment. A jury convicted Vo of four misdemeanor counts related to the riot. His mother also has been charged with Jan. 6-related crimes.
More than 1,300 people have charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol riot. The vast majority of them have remained free while awaiting trial or a plea deal to resolve their case.
Chutkan told Vo, 31, of Bloomington, Indiana, that he was fortunate that she didn’t order him jailed after his trial conviction. She said he has consistently refused to express remorse or accept responsibility for his conduct on Jan. 6.
“He has doubled down on his behavior,” she said.
Before learning his sentence, Vo said he is “sorry for everything” and knows he shouldn’t have entered the Capitol on Jan. 6.
“I wasn’t there to overthrow any democratic process or anything,” he told the judge.
In his bio for a social media account, Vo has called himself a “J6 wrongful convict.” In a post after his trial, he wrote that “there was zero jury of peers and 100% a kangaroo court.”
“I’ve been referred to as worse,” Chutkan stated, stressing that she wasn’t punishing Vo for his insult or his political opinions.
“I’m thick-skinned,” the pass judgement on added.
Chutkan has stood out as one of the toughest punishers of Capitol rioters, incessantly handing down jail sentences which can be harsher than prosecutors’ suggestions. Vo’s lawyer, Carmen Hernandez, advised Chutkan that she seems to be an “outlier” in comparison to different judges who’ve sentenced Jan. 6 defendants.
“I may be an outlier, as Ms. Hernandez suggests. I don’t necessarily think I am,” Chutkan stated.
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