Joe Biggs, leader of the Proud Boys, sentenced to 17 years for the assault on the Capitol

The weight of justice is beginning to fall on the leaders of the Proud Boys, a far-right paramilitary group that prosecutors said saw themselves as “Trump’s army.” Members of the group played a prominent role in leading the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 to prevent the certification of Joe Biden’s lopsided victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Four were convicted of seditious conspiracy in May past, including the leader of the group, Enrique Tarrio. The first sentenced was his lieutenant Joe Biggs, sentenced this Thursday in Washington to 17 years in prison.

Enrique Tarrio’s sentencing, originally scheduled for Wednesday, has been delayed until Tuesday of next week due to the judge’s illness. Prosecutors are asking for a 33-year sentence for him, the same as they were asking for the already sentenced Biggs. The sentence is the second largest imposed for the assault on the Capitol. It falls short of that of Stewart Rhodes, founder and leader of the far-right group Oath Keepers, sentenced in May to 18 years in prison, the longest sentence imposed so far.

More than 1,100 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the riots on Capitol Hill. More than 600 of them have been convicted and sentenced. Not directly for the assault on the Capitol, but for his attempts to overturn the election result, Trump is charged both in Washington, where he is scheduled to sit on the bench on March 4, 2024, and in Georgia. In the case of the former president there is no accusation of seditious conspiracy, but there are multiple charges, including one related to organized crime, which can carry significant prison sentences. Seditious conspiracy was classified during the Civil War, to persecute the Confederate rebels, but prosecutors have dusted it off for the assault on the Capitol.

The convicted man, who tweeted “this is war” in reference to the recognition of Biden’s victory, was among the ringleaders of the assault on the Capitol. On January 6, 2021, thousands of people, including many members of his organization, gathered in Washington to attend a Donald Trump rally. From there, the mob began a march towards the Capitol, where the most violent broke through the police defense lines. They forcibly entered the headquarters of the legislative branch when it was meeting in a session to certify the electoral victory of Democrat Biden. Senators and congressmen had to flee and take refuge while the assailants occupied the chambers, entered the offices and toured the building.

The trial was held for four months from last January, before the conviction that came in May. “I know I screwed up that day,” Biggs told the judge moments before being sentenced, “but I’m not a terrorist,” according to AP. “Curiosity got the better of me, and I will have to live with it for the rest of my life,” he added, stating that he had “no hate in his heart” and that he did not want to hurt anyone.

District Judge Timothy Kelly said the Jan. 6 attack trampled on an “important American custom,” that of certifying the Electoral College vote. “That day broke our tradition of peacefully transferring power, which is one of the most precious things we have as Americans,” he added.

Waiting for the leader

Enrique Tarrio, a Miami resident who was the national president and top leader of the Proud Boys, was also convicted in May although he was not in Washington on January 6. He had been arrested two days before the assault on the Capitol accused of having painted a Black Lives Matter banner during an earlier demonstration in the nation’s capital, and complied with the judge’s order to leave the city after his arrest.

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