Two participants in last year’s Capitol riot who were responsible for a message of “Murder the Media” that was written on a Capitol door were both sentenced to four years in prison after each pleading guilty to a felony criminal charge of obstruction of an official proceeding stemming from their involvement.
Both of the newly sentenced rioters, including Hawaii man and founder of the state chapter of the Proud Boys Nicholas Ochs and Texas resident Nicholas DeCarlo, who also has connections to the group, were among the participants in the mob who eventually went inside the Capitol building during last year’s chaos. DeCarlo wrote the anti-media message, which was evidently the name of a social media presence used by the men, as Ochs filmed. DeCarlo also mockingly yelled on camera as the day’s chaos unfolded about those participating becoming felony offenders. In a piece of footage highlighted by journalist Ryan Reilly, he even started chanting: “Felony charges!” Adding to the impression that Ochs and DeCarlo approached their participation in a violent assault on a seat of American democracy as though it was a game, they also captured themselves on camera smoking cigarettes inside the Capitol, which they entered about ten minutes after the initial breach of the building itself.
A press release from the Justice Department notes that Ochs and DeCarlo also looked through a U.S. Capitol Police duffel bag, and DeCarlo took a pair of plastic handcuffs. The sentences Ochs and DeCarlo received were roughly in line with what prosecutors sought from the judge, although the Justice Department asked for a slightly longer sentence for Ochs. As previously reported here, in a portion of the government sentencing memo for Ochs that was highlighted by journalist Ryan Reilly, prosecutors note how he claimed to have simply been documenting what was happening at the Capitol as a journalist, although he was among those hurling smoke grenades at police defending the premises — not exactly a mark of journalistic interest! DeCarlo did the same, besides also calling out for Nancy Pelosi, who was also sought by other rioters.
Ochs also directed other participants in the mob assault towards the outgoing Speaker’s offices. Individuals on Pelosi’s staff have previously spoken about their close calls as the riot unfolded while they sought to evade the rampage. Other recent developments in Capitol riot cases include the convictions by a jury of three men who used pepper spray against police and participated in violence against cops in the area of the Lower West Terrace, where some of the most brutal confrontations that day unfolded. One of those convicted took multiple bags of pepper spray canisters from the D.C. city police department and distributed contents to others in the mob. Another sprayed chemical irritants he was separately carrying that day. The wife of the man who distributed pepper spray to other rioters also participated and previously pleaded guilty.
Image: Anthony Crider/ Creative Commons
