The second longest sentence in convictions related to the January 6, 2021, Capitol riots has been handed to a man from California.
After pleading guilty to charges of attacking police, 37-year-old David Dempsey will spend the next 20 years in jail. The sentence was passed down by a senior judge in Washington, D.C, marking the second longest to be dealt to those involved in the infamous 2021 demonstration.
The convicted man admitted to the two charges against him, which encompassed striking police with poles and using pepper spray against them, resulting in “significant injury” to two law enforcement officers. Dempsey, a California resident, had made his way to the East Coast to participate in the “Stop the Steal” protest that claimed President Joe Biden had not won the 2020 election.
Supporters of former president Donald Trump gathered at the nation’s capital that day to protest the legality of transferring power from one president to the next, claiming that the highly controversial election had been rigged.
In addition to attacking police, prosecutors say Dempsey called for the hanging of certain Democratic leaders—including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and New York Rep. Jerry Nadler—while being recorded via YouTube livestream. Although attorneys wanted him to be sentenced to 21 years in jail for being “one of the most violent rioters,” he was given a 20-year sentence instead.
So far, 560 sentences involving jail time have been given to protestors—which exceed 1,400 criminally charged citizens. But Dempsey does not boast the longest such sentence in the ongoing prosecution.
In September 2023, former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio was dealt the longest prison sentence to date, lasting 22 years. He was convicted of a number of charges, including seditious conspiracy, without even being present at the riot.
Tarrio was reportedly arrested in Washington, D.C. before the riot took place. His offense included burning a Black Lives Matter flag hung outside a church and carrying magazines for high-capacity rifles into the city. A judge then told him to leave the district. However, prosecutors argued that Tarrio’s impact was just as detrimental as if he had been leading the charge on the Capitol Building on January 6.
District Judge Timothy Kelly agreed, describing the Proud Boys leader as someone who had “an outsized impact” on the protest that day. The Department of Justice (DOJ) had originally wanted Tarrio to be sentenced to 33 years.
While Americans from across the country continue to be arrested, charged, convicted, and sentenced for their roles in the 2021 riots, reporters recently asked Trump if he will pardon January 6 protestors if he wins his re-election campaign. The controversial Republican—who has also been tied up in legal battles related to that day—said he would “absolutely” forgive sentences of those who are “innocent.”
He added that January 6 convicted criminals were sentenced through “a very tough system.” So far, over 1,400 have been charged and over 1,000 convictions have been obtained by prosecutors. The cases range from more serious (seditious conspiracy) to less intense illegal actions (unlawful parading).
