‘Cowboys for Trump’ founder dodges additional jail time for Jan. 6 conviction

(*6*)Ultimately, McFadden sentenced Griffin to 14 days in jail however offset it with credit score for his time already served. He additionally issued a $3,000 advantageous, a yr of supervised launch and 60 hours of group service. Justice Department prosecutors had sought 90 days in jail, with credit score for his pretrial detention, and a $1,000 advantageous.

(*6*)Griffin’s case grew to become a major benchmark among the many greater than 800 defendants charged for their actions on Jan. 6. He was the primary misdemeanor defendant to go to trial, electing to have a bench trial earlier than McFadden — which means the choose, and never a jury, would determine the case. McFadden discovered him responsible on one rely of coming into and remaining in a restricted space, and he acquitted Griffin on a cost of violent or disorderly conduct in a restricted space.

(*6*)As the case moved towards trial earlier this yr, Griffin mounted a case that included the assertion that then-Vice President Mike Pence left Capitol grounds throughout the assault. Ultimately, McFadden compelled prosecutors to elicit testimony from the Secret Service that confirmed Pence remained in an underground loading dock beneath the Capitol plaza for the period of the assault, the primary time Pence’s exact location was confirmed.

(*6*)No proof confirmed Griffin ever entered the Capitol, a reality McFadden repeatedly famous, however video proof confirmed he climbed over retainer partitions and used a toppled barricade to achieve the restricted space of the Capitol, the place he remained for hours. He additionally spent an extended stretch atop the platform erected for President Joe Biden’s inauguration, the place he watched a few of the chaos unfolding under and remarked on the scent of chemical sprays officers and rioters deployed.

(*6*)Griffin maintained his innocence in a press release to the courtroom Friday. He stated he didn’t know the grounds had been restricted, that he was led by “faith” to the foot of the Capitol. He urged leniency, saying he’d confronted hostility at dwelling, together with an effort to recall him from his put up as a county commissioner for Otero County in New Mexico.

(*6*)McFadden referred to as Griffin’s clarification “preposterous.” He accused Griffin of utilizing his public place to tout his actions on Jan. 6 and stated he continued to make menacing statements about returning to D.C. with firearms.

(*6*)“You’re probably your own worst enemy,” McFadden stated.

(*6*)He famous that Griffin spent the weeks after Jan. 6 drawing consideration to and celebrating his conduct in a manner that McFadden stated moderately drew the Justice Department’s discover.

(*6*)He additionally stated Griffin’s actions and conduct, together with after his conviction, confirmed he had “disdain for our nation’s laws and criminal justice system.”