On Tuesday, a federal judge sentenced the first of the rioters involved in the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol to nearly seven years in prison.
The defendant, George Pierre Tanios, was one of more than 300 people charged in connection with the attack, in which supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol in an effort to disrupt the certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory.
Tanios was convicted of assaulting three police officers with a chemical spray during the attack, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who later died from his injuries.
Tanios was charged with assaulting a federal officer with a dangerous weapon, obstruction of an official proceeding, civil disorder, and other related offenses. He was also charged with obstruction of justice for lying to investigators about his involvement in the attack.
In handing down the sentence, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta said that Tanios’ actions on Jan. 6 were “nothing short of a massacre.”
“This was an attack on the heart of our democracy,” Mehta said. “It was an attack on the rule of law. It was an attack on the Capitol and all of us who serve here.”
Tanios, who was also ordered to pay more than $100,000 in restitution to the victims of the attack, apologized for his actions and said he was “deeply sorry” for the pain he had caused.
“I never meant to hurt anyone,” he said. “I never meant to cause any harm.”
Tanios’ sentence is the longest so far handed down in connection with the attack, and is a clear signal that the Justice Department is taking the attack seriously and is determined to hold those responsible accountable.
The attack on the Capitol was a dark day in U.S. history, and the sentence handed down to Tanios is a reminder that the rule of law still holds in this country and that there are consequences for those who break it.
