'Sovereign citizen' Jan. 6 rioter gets seven years for leading mob assault on officers
Source: NBC News
Taylor James Johnatakis was convicted in November on felony counts of obstruction of an official proceeding, assaulting officers and civil disorder, as well as four misdemeanor charges. Judge Royce Lamberth, who was appointed to the bench by former President Ronald Reagan, said at the sentencing hearing on Wednesday that he was troubled by Johnatakis' "lack of remorse" and he was concerned that, if given the chance, Johnatakis might engage in violence again.
Noting the letters of support that Johnatakis' friends and family had sent to the court, Lamberth noted that Johnatakis was being held "accountable for what he did," not the person he is. Unfortunately, Lamberth said, Johnatakis left his good attributes at home "when he went to the Capitol on Jan. 6."
Much as he did during the trial, Johnatakis continued not to engage with the substance of the proceedings and instead advanced sovereign citizen arguments, indicating that he did not think he was subject to the federal justice system.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/sovereign-citizen-jan-6-rioter-gets-seven-years-leading-mob-assault-of-rcna146215
Ray Bruns
(4,109 posts)republianmushroom
(13,653 posts)brooklynite
(94,675 posts)InstantGratification
(162 posts)... the sovereign citizen ass wipes FAFO in the federal court system. Oops, I guess the gubmint really can exercise it's authority over this fool. To the tune of 7 years in club fed.
louis-t
(23,296 posts)a Sovereign Citizen in prison, too. So he has that going for him. Which is nice.
brooklynite
(94,675 posts)This cannot become normal We cannot condone the normalization of the January 6 US Capitol riot, US District Judge Royce Lamberth said while sentencing Taylor James Johnatakis to more than seven years in prison.
The judge warned of a vicious cycle that could imperil our institutions if Americans, upset with future election results, resort to the vigilantism, lawlessness and anarchy that occurred on January 6, 2021.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/03/politics/trump-criticism-judge-royce-lamberth-january-6/index.html
IronLionZion
(45,493 posts)I enjoy watching sovereign citizens get owned. They find out the hard way they don't have to believe in laws in order to be prosecuted and imprisoned for breaking the laws. One's belief in something has no bearing on whether it's real or not.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_citizen_movement
calimary
(81,405 posts)I celebrate it!
ShazzieB
(16,472 posts)"The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it."
And like the laws of science, the law of the land applies to all of us whether or not we believe it.
That MAGA jackhole won't be convinced by this experience, though. MAGA jackholes, sovereign citizens, and flat earthers are all impervious to logic and facts, and he is two out of those three. He might as well be surrounded by an anti-logic force field!
SouthernDem4ever
(6,617 posts)Of course, then I look at people that vote for Dump and think the same thing. Seems it's the same sickness
GB_RN
(2,371 posts)What a crock of shit. These assholes use US money, taxpayer funded roads, other infrastructure, and services, and yet
and yet! think they arent subject to the same rules and regulations as the rest of us? Get the fuck out.
SouthernDem4ever
(6,617 posts)They get suckered into thinking they don't need a driver's license or car registration and the poor cops have to listen to their bullshit when arresting them. I really have to respect the police for dealing with this kind of garbage all the time. 95% of the cases I see are idiots that already have warrants on them or other crimes they area trying to hide from. Some moron on the internet named "King" or some other dumb name tells them they don't need to follow local or state laws but instead quote century old maritime laws. it's got to be one of the dumbest things I've ever seen. Then after they are arrested, they clog up the court system with their bullshit which costs taxpayers even more money.
GB_RN
(2,371 posts)That we give all these assholes, and I included the GOPQ in this, some place they can go and have their own little fascist, theocratic, utopia and leave the rest of us the hell alone.
Give them some place thats say, borderline inhospitable, like in southern Arizona, or the Nevada desert (where nukes were tested 😂 ). Then we can build the border wall they want. Well just build it around them to keep them out of the rest of the country.😁
Hassler
(3,384 posts)EarthFirst
(2,901 posts)I wasnt able to ascertain that information.
If it wasnt; why not?
If we want to instill a sense of order and justice to the 1 in 5 that believe violence is the answer; anything less than maximum sentencing for J6ers is a gross disservice to our democracy.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143220073
moniss
(4,274 posts)Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin
(108,133 posts)As a resident of this state I'm glad to see the asshole locked up.