- Florida native Paul Hodgkins pleaded guilty to obstructing official proceedings on June 2.
- Hodgkins said he was “remorseful and regretful” for his actions and admitted that these actions may have encouraged others to engage in destructive behavior.
- More than 535 people have been accused of participating in the attack.
On Monday, a federal judge sentenced Florida native Paul Hodgkins to eight months’ imprisonment for his role in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, making him a prisoner of hundreds of people facing prosecution. The first of the mob prosecutors.
The 38-year-old Hodgkins admitted to obstructing official procedures on June 2 because Congress was formally proving that Joe Biden was elected President of the United States in November last year when supporters of former President Donald Trump rampaged through the building.
At the sentencing hearing on Monday, Prosecutor Mona Sedkey told U.S. Magistrate Randolph Moss that Tampa resident Hodgkins put on goggles before entering the Senate during the riots and “proudly placed In a selfie pose” and texted a friend.
Read also | Florida group accused of assaulting police during the U.S. Capitol riots
Sedkey admitted that Hodgkins did not damage any property, “nor did he harm anyone.”
In a statement to the court, Hodgkins said he felt “remorse and regret” for his actions in Washington, and admitted that these actions may have encouraged others to engage in destructive behavior.
Hodgkins told the court:
This is a stupid decision for me, and I bear full responsibility for it.
Moss agreed that Hodgkins did not act violently, did not threaten anyone, and did not organize an attack on the Capitol. But the judge said that Hodgkins went to the Capitol “to hinder the certification of the election, and he admitted that he did.”
The judge stated that although he believed that Hodgkins’ involvement in the riots was “an aberration in his life,” he also believed that the January 6 attack “stained” American history and it was necessary to stop future rioters.
More than 535 people have been accused of participating in the attack, an unsuccessful attempt to prevent Congress from proving Biden’s victory over Trump, who falsely claimed that the election was stolen from him through extensive voting fraud.
Although the other defendants had pleaded guilty to the mob on January 6, Hodgkins became the first person to be sentenced to prison.
