An associate of the far-right Three Percenters militia was sentenced to more than seven years in prison Monday for joining a mob of former President Donald Trump supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and later threatened to harm his children if they reported him to the FBI. Guy Reffitt, of Wylie, Texas, was convicted by a jury in March of five felony counts, including planting a weapon on the Capitol and obstructing an official proceeding. US District Judge Dabney Friedrich handed down a prison sentence of seven years and three months – the longest so far for anyone involved in the riot. To date, federal prosecutors have been convicted in all but one of 13 trials related to the Capitol attack that sought to block Congress from certifying Trump’s election defeat. Previously, the maximum sentence for a Jan. 6 case was 63 months, but in those two cases, the defendants chose not to go to trial and instead pleaded guilty. Friedrich on Monday also sentenced Refit to three years of supervised release, during which she said she will supervise herself to police him for any violations. In addition, he banned him from association with militia groups and ordered him to undergo mental health treatment. Earlier Monday, the judge said she was troubled by Reffitt’s actions and comments that suggested he wanted to subvert Congress, calling his statements “frightening claims bordering on delusion.” “In a democracy, we respect a peaceful transfer of power,” he said. “The election has been challenged in multiple courts across the country, and judge after judge has said there is no merit to these claims.” Friedrich declined to apply a domestic terrorism enhancement to her sentence — the first requested in a Jan. 6 case — even though the lead federal prosecutor and a former Capitol Police officer who filed a victim impact statement both said that they believed that Reffitt had committed an act of terrorism that day. Refit “intended to harm members of Congress,” former Capitol Police officer Shauni Kerkhoff told the court, adding that she “watched in horror as she encouraged the angry mob to pass. Reffitt, 49 at the time of his sentencing, never entered the Capitol, but video evidence showed him punching the crowd and leading other rioters up a flight of stairs outside the building. His trial included testimony from Jackson’s estranged son, who brought his father to tears as he told the court that his father threatened him if he dared to call the FBI. “He said, ‘If you turn me in, you’re a traitor and traitors are shot,’” Jackson Refitt told jurors. At his sentencing, prosecutors presented evidence showing that Refit intended to commit additional acts of violence. In a text exchange after the January 6 attack, he told other members of the militia: “We took the capital of the United States of America and we will do it again.” His daughter Peyton addressed the court, breaking down as she told the judge: “As far as I know my father, he is not a threat to my family,” adding that his mental health “is a real issue.” Jackson Refitt also wrote a letter that was read aloud in court. “I hope to see my father use all the safety nets” available in prison, including mental health care, she added. Refitt told the judge on Monday that in 2020 he was “pretty much crazy” and apologized to police and his family. He also apologized to the judge for his inarticulate statements, in which he repeatedly used euphemisms to describe his actions on January 6. “I want nothing to do with these things anymore. I don’t want to have anything to do with militia groups… I’m very sorry,” he said. The Morning Update and Afternoon Update newsletters are written by Globe editors, giving you a concise summary of the day’s most important headlines. Sign up today. This content appears as provided to The Globe by the original wire service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.
