Appeals court rules to vacate sentence for a J6 defendant, could lead to more in coming weeks

Original article here.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Larry Brock, an Airforce Officer from Grapevine, Texas, was convicted in 2023 of obstruction of an official proceeding, a felony charge, as well as misdemeanor offenses for his participation in the January 6 incident at the Capitol in Washington D.C.

The officer was sentenced to two years in prison and is currently serving his sentence at a federal prison in Missouri. Brock is expected to be released in December 2024.

Brock was seen wearing a tactical vest and a helmet when he joined others on the Senate floor just moments after staff, senators, and VP Mike Pence had evacuated the chamber. A photo that was shared on social media and major media outlets shows Brock holding a pair of zip-tie handcuffs on the Senate floor. The cuffs had been discarded before Brock picked them up.

Court papers show that Brock’s attorney indicated that he did not intend any harm when he picked up the cuffs.

On Friday, a Washington D.C. appeals court issued a new ruling in the case. The panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld Brock’s conviction; however, they ultimately decided that a judge “wrongly applied an enhancement that lengthened the recommended prison sentence range under federal guidelines,” according to the Associated Press.

A spokesperson for the Washington U.S. attorney’s office, Patricia Hartman, said that more than 100 additional January 6 defendants have had this enhancement applied to their cases. The enhancement says that Brock’s conduct resulted in “substantial interference with the administration of justice.”

The three-judge panel 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.’”

According to Brock’s attorney, the enhancement was misapplied and likely added about nine months to his client’s sentence. The initial recommendation from prosecutors in the case was a prison sentence of five years.

The extent that punishment may be reduced upon resentencing remains unclear at this time. What is clear is that the ruling to vacate Brock’s sentence could impact many more defendants in the January 6 incident.

Obstruction of an official proceeding is among the most common charges brought against those involved in January 6. In April, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on yet another felony obstruction charge. This appeal was filed by lawyers of another January 6 defendant.

The outcome of that hearing could upend many more January 6 cases

There is currently no date set for Brock’s resentencing.