Thread by @JordanOnRecord

Meanwhile in Chief Judge Howell's court, Jack Griffith – the #CapitolRiot defendant who said he was making a video game where you play Donald Trump hunting pedophiles and Satanists – is being sentenced on one misdemeanor count. @wusa9

Joined this one in progress, but Chief Judge Howell is really pressing the government on "what appears to me to be an evolving, changing position" in terms of what sentences the DOJ is asking for #CapitolRiot defendants to serve.

She points out that the DOJ only asked for Anna Morgan-Lloyd, who pleaded guilty to the same count as Jack Griffith is, to serve probation. The DOJ is asking for Griffith to serve 3 months behind bars. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…

DOJ says Griffith and his co-defendant, Eric Torrens, saw other rioters assaulting police (and continued on), whereas Anna Morgan-Lloyd didn't. Also, Griffith tried to used the #CapitolRiot to promote himself and his video game on TikTok.

Chief Judge Howell is questioning the DOJ again about the $500 restitution amount they've come up with for all of these cases. She says the government's explanation for their damage estimate is "somewhat facile."

"I want to understand how this fairly reflects" the damage.

The DOJ is using a damage estimate of $1.5 million. As Chief Judge Howell points out, the emergency security supplemental Congress passed contained more than $500 million for the Architect of the Capitol alone to respond to January 6. wusa9.com/article/news/n…

Howell points out the DOJ in the past has had no qualms about using aggressive restitution figures. The DOJ is explaining the $1.5 million damage estimate they're using came from the Architect of the Capitol in mid-May and they are continually reviewing it.

Chief Judge Howell says $500 in restitution for 600 defendants "doesn't even get close to the $1.5 million" the DOJ says January 6 did in damage to the Capitol.

DOJ says the #CapitolRiot defendants who are convicted of a felony are going to be required to pay $2,000 in restitution. If defendants are found to have damaged or stolen property, they will have to pay an additional amount in restitution.

Chief Judge Howell now asking why the DOJ isn't asking for probation for Jack Griffith, which would allow the probation office to supervise his repayment of the restitution.

Chief Judge Howell: “I have to tell you, every single criminal case I have where there’s restitution or a fine, the government asks for probation. And they ask for a length of time sufficient for it to be repaid.”

Howell: “This is the first time I’ve ever had the government ask for a restitution payment and not ask for a term of probation.”

Howell asks if the government thinks a split sentence (jail + probation) would be illegal for these Class "B" misdemeanor cases? DOJ says no.

Chief Judge Howell says in disbelief that it appears like the government is "resolving the crime of the century with Class 'B' misdemeanors."

Griffith's attorney says he has issues with impulsivity and an "Internet addiction," both attributable to his ADHD.

Griffith's attorney says his game is "not any different from any of the other horrible games on the Internet... except the monsters are antifa or those considered left-wing and the superhero is Trump."

Griffith's attorney also said he wasn't even registered to vote on November 3, didn't vote for Trump, has referred to Trump as the "Cheeto Mussolini."

Chief Judge Howell says Jack Griffith's conduct on January 6 wasn't impulsive. "He posted that 'The cavalry is coming' and the he wanted to storm the capitol. And then he did!"

Griffith's attorney said he would like to do his community service by starting a food bank, and suggests he could do this because he once worked at Wal-Mart.

Chief Judge Howell: "There have been other defendants, at time of sentencing, have expressed remorse and said they gained an understanding by reading books. And then as *soon* as they were sentenced to probation, they downplayed the events."

Chief Judge Howell: "Judges are human. And we can get played."

Griffith's attorney, Heather Shaner, also represented Anna Morgan-Lloyd (who Howell is referring to here). She says Morgan-Lloyd got "played" by Laura Ingraham, who took advantage of her "stupidity."

Shaner says multiple places have reached out to Anna Morgan-Lloyd to explain her appearance on Ingraham's show, but that it's all "too raw" and upsetting for her. She doesn't want to speak to the FBI for the same reason.

"I believe that Ms. Morgan-Lloyd was genuinely remorseful. I was shocked when the government sent me the video of her on Fox. I was angry. I felt betrayed," Heather Shaner says.

"And then I talked to her and I realized it's very difficult for an individual to go on Fox News, and other outlets, where they're less interested in the truth than in creating a narrative," Shaner says. "For her it was a terrible idea."

Jack Griffith: "I honestly never planned on doing anything extreme or even entering the building... Our actions that day flew in the face of the entire plan."

Jack Griffith: "I disavow, in the strongest degree, anyone who committed those acts of violence." Griffith says if he ever talks to the news he will be clear in disavowing the violence on January 6.

Jack Griffith: "When I was inside the building, police were very polite to us. I was under the impression our presence was a minor inconvenience. I now realize Capitol Police were probably crippled by fear and just looking to appease us."

Jack Griffith: "My mind used to be muddied by extremist politics." Says he's now focused on improving himself, exercising, working on video game development. Also says he's found the person who might be "the love of my life."

Jack Griffith: "Without my presence, I know there would not have been an attempted coup. I know that I added on to that."

Chief Judge Howell: "Mr. Griffith, you say you've learned some lessons. So tell me, what are the lessons you've learned?" Says his post-arrest social media activity shows he still believes in the Big Lie that the 2020 election was stolen.

Jack Griffith: "Violence is never appropriate in political discourse, and I disavow that. Your honor, I know I shouldn't have been there that day and I never should have entered the building."

Jack Griffith: "I beg to be spared from the cold, lonely nights in a prison cell."

Chief Judge Howell says she wants to correct the defendant's sentencing memo, which states that "the court sentences the offender, not the offense." She says Congress has mandated that judges consider "far more" than the individual standing before them.

"The nature of the offense and the harm it caused must be considered," Chief Judge Howell says.

Chief Judge Howell points out that the parading offense Griffith is pleading to is usually for people who briefly disrupt hearings and wind up with a $50 ticket.

"But this is the charge the government chose," she says, adding it has "tied" judges hands on sentencing options.

Chief Judge Howell says in the same sentencing memo where the DOJ describes the Capitol Riot as "chaotic," "unparalleled," violent, it also talks about simple trespassing.

"This is a muddled approach by the government," Chief Judge Howell says. "No wonder parts of the public are confused about whether what happened on January 6 was just trespassing with some disorderliness, or *shocking* criminal conduct. No wonder."

"Let me tell you my view," Chief Judge Howell says. "The people who entered the Capitol were not mere trespassers... the damage to the reputation of our democracy, that's usually held up around that world... that reputation suffered after January 6."

"Mr. Griffith says he grew up as an Army brat," Chief Judge Howell says. "Well, Mr. Griffith, I'm an Army brat too. And I just find your words so difficult to reconcile with your actions. It's just inconceivable that an Army brat would participate in that."

"You can believe what you want. You can say what you believe," Chief Judge Howell says. "But what you say also provides a window into your mindset on that day."

"You were not a 'good guy' or a patriot on January 6," Chief Judge Howell says. "Based on what you said in your letter, you recognize now that what you did was engage in criminal conduct."

"You tried to blame other people, the media, for your actions on January 6. You're not a lemming, Mr. Griffith. You have to take accountability for your own actions," Chief Judge Howell says.

Chief Judge Howell says she has to consider the right sentence to deter others whose chosen candidates don't win an election "to think they have recourse in a mob."

Chief Judge Howell says the real question is whether a Class "B" misdemeanor can legally result in a split sentence of both incarceration and probation. Says the DOJ has never taken the position that it can in any other court in the country.

Chief Judge Howell says she doesn't even know how the court is suppose to monitor compliance with the restitution payments if defendants aren't under probation, but that's the situation the DOJ has put her in.

Chief Judge Howell says she has to weigh the fact that the government has recommended only probation for other #CapitolRiot defendants who have also pleaded guilty to the parading charge.

"Members of a mob who breach barriers and pushed back officers to disrupt the joint session of Congress are not trespassers, they are criminals," Chief Judge Howell says.

🚨 SENTENCE: Chief Judge Howell says she thinks jail time would be warranted, but because the DOJ has previously asked and received probation only for other misdemeanor #CapitolRiot defendants, she's sentencing Jack Griffith to 36 months of probation.

Griffith will have to pay his restitution in monthly installments of $25 for 20 months. He will have to submit his electronic devices to a search. Must stay off social media without the approval of his probation officer.

Honestly not sure which part of that very newsworthy hearing to write up first.

Chief Judge Beryl Howell was unsparing today, telling the DOJ its "muddied" and "schizophrenic" approach to sentencing in #CapitolRiot cases is tying judges' hands and hurting its ability to get the jail time it says defendants deserve. wusa9.com/article/news/n… @wusa9 @EricFlackTV

And the second story, about Anna Morgan-Lloyd's interview w/ Fox News' Laura Ingraham a day after her sentencing – and her attorney's new claim that she was "played." wusa9.com/article/news/n…