Appeals Court Rules J6 Defendants’ Sentences Improperly Lengthened

In what can only be called a shocking surprise, the notoriously liberal U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit sided with Jan. 6 defendants in the face of unjustifiably long sentences handed down. The unanimous ruling centered on the two-year term applied to protester Larry Brock.

The injustice must have been deplorable for this court to reach this conclusion.

Brock’s sentence was enhanced by the accusation of “interfering with the administration of justice.” This type of claim has been common in the federal persecutions of many who did nothing more than show up at the Capitol.

Judge Patricia Millett wrote, “Brock’s interference with one stage of the electoral college vote-counting process — while no doubt endangering our democratic processes and temporarily derailing Congress’s constitutional work — did not interfere with the ‘administration of justice.’”

This much is obvious, but Democrats and their cohorts in the legal system threw every charge and enhancement possible against the defendants.

SHOCK: Obama, Clinton, and Bush appointed federal appeals judges unanimously agree that the Biden regime improperly lengthened the prison sentences of J6 political prisoners. https://t.co/FwlfZWjkg1

— @amuse (@amuse) March 1, 2024

This is good news for as many as 330 Jan. 6 demonstrators who faced counts of obstruction. There is also a case with similar characteristics going before the U.S. Supreme Court next month concerning Joseph Fischer, a Pennsylvania police officer. 

It is quite possible the appeals court decision could force a recalculation of other defendants’ sentencing.

Federal judges work under sentencing guidelines and are encouraged to apply the “administration of justice” enhancement to those found guilty of disrupting judicial proceedings.

Meaning grand jury investigations or court hearings. 

Implementing these enhancements may add over a year to the convicted party’s incarceration. This was frequently done at the request of Biden’s Justice Department in cases involving Jan. 6 demonstrators.

In Brock’s situation, the three-judge panel nullified the enhancement of his sentence by U.S. District Judge John Bates — a George W. Bush nominee.

As could be expected, the Justice Department is considering an appeal to keep demonstrators under punishment for as long as possible. This could result in a hearing before the full appeals court or the case being taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The best possible outcome is a lowering in the draconian sentences given to non-violent demonstrators who did not deserve them. Many had their lives ruined through the weaponization of a judicial system that virtually ignored the widespread violence of 2020.