By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — A man was found guilty of assaulting police officers during the U.S. Capitol riot and has now been sentenced to six years in prison. U.S. Capitol riot was sentenced on Tuesday to six years in prison.
David Joseph Gietzen, 31, of Sanford, North Carolina, hit a police officer with a pole during the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
Gietzen, 31, said he didn't mean to hurt anyone that day, but he didn't show any remorse for his actions on January 6 when he participated in disrupting the joint session of Congress to confirm President Joe Biden's 2020 electoral victory.
He stated, "I want to make it clear that I believe I did the right thing" before hearing his sentence.
The judge said Gietzen made it clear during his trial testimony — and his sentencing hearing — that he clings to his baseless beliefs that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Trump.
The judge said, "Mr. Gietzen essentially showed no remorse today about his conduct."
Gietzen was convicted last August of eight charges, including assault and civil disorder. After the trial, he ignored a court order to report to prison on October 20, 2023. He missed several hearings before being arrested on December 12, 2023.
“This pattern of flouting rules and laws and doing what he wants, regardless of the consequences, is how Gietzen operates,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing.
Gietzen's lawyer said he stayed at his house, “just waiting to be picked up,” and wasn’t trying to hide after his conviction.
Prosecutors recommended a prison term of 10 years and one month for Gietzen, who worked as a computer programming engineer after graduating from North Carolina State University in 2017 with bachelor’s degrees in computer engineering and electrical engineering.
“Clearly, Gietzen is bright and able to get something done when he puts his mind to it – be it a college degree or assaulting officers as part of in a violent mob,” prosecutors wrote.
Gietzen’s attorneys requested a four-year prison sentence.
“David’s current philosophy is that he no longer wishes to be engaged with the political process,” defense attorneys wrote. “His involvement with politics has concluded and should be an indication to the Court that he is no longer interested in being a threat to the public or political process.”
Gietzen and his brother traveled from North Carolina to Washington, D.C., to attend then-President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House on January 6 before heading to the Capitol.
During the mob's attack on the Capitol, Gietzen pushed a police officer, took another officer’s gas mask, and hit an officer with a pole.
“And all of Gietzen’s violence was based on a lack of respect for law enforcement and the democratic process — its goal was to get himself and other rioters closer to the building so they could interfere with the certification of the election,” prosecutors wrote.
Gietzen later bragged about taking part in the riot in messages to friends and family, saying he had “never been prouder to be an American.”
More than 1,350 individuals have been charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol riot. Over 800 of them have been given sentences, with about two-thirds receiving terms of imprisonment lasting from a few days to 22 years.
