Two supporters of Donald Trump cried in court on Friday as they were sentenced for their role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“Two New York state men who led a mob that overwhelmed police at the perimeter of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — then bodysurfed over the top of the crowd at a building entrance and pepper-sprayed officers — were both sentenced Friday to 44 months in prison,” The New York Times reported. “Cody Mattice, 29, of Greece, N.Y., and James Mault, 30, of Brockport, N.Y., both wept as they stood before Chief U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell and asked for leniency, apologizing for their actions and saying they hoped to return soon to their families and young children. But Howell noted that prosecutors had already cut them a reasonable deal by dropping charges that could have led to far more prison time, and she imposed the sentences requested by the government. Only four other Jan. 6 defendants have been sentenced to longer prison terms.”
Judge Howell said, “they were not patriots on Jan. 6, and no one who broke the police lines and stopped the democratic process was a patriot that day.”
Mattice reportedly took video of the two.
“Text messages obtained by the FBI showed that Mattice and Mault planned for violence on Jan. 6, initially expecting resistance from antifa. They texted family members during the mayhem, and then congratulated each other in the days after the riot, which temporarily halted the certification of the presidential election,” the newspaper reported. “Howell read from many of the messages, using the same profanity the men had.”
The two men pleaded guilty in April.
“Shortly before the police line was breached, Mault attempted to convince officers to stand down and join with the mob,” the DOJ announced. “At approximately 2:30 p.m., Mattice pulled down a segment of the metal barricades that stood in front of a police line. He quickly grabbed it with both hands, pulling it away from officers and onto the ground. A short time later, rioters overwhelmed the police line, forcing officers to retreat up a central staircase to the Lower West Terrace. Mattice and Mault were part of the group that assaulted the police line. They stood at or near the front of the group, pushing forward against the officers, who attempted to keep the rioters from advancing.”
Both men maced officers.
At approximately 4 p.m., Mattice and Mault approached the tunnel leading into the Capitol Building from the Lower West Terrace,” DOJ said. “They attempted to push through the crowd and climbed up and body-surfed over other rioters. After reaching the tunnel, they grabbed onto and hung from the wooden frame surrounding the arch. Mattice reached out to another rioter and grabbed a small object appearing to be a canister. He then sprayed chemical spray at police officers. After doing so, Mattice fell back and into the crowd. Mault likewise obtained a small canister containing chemical spray from another member of the crowd, and he, too, sprayed it at officers defending the tunnel.”
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