Professor Ian Weinstein shares his insight on the sentencing of Capitol rioters in an article published by USA Today. Professor Weinstein discusses the factors that may influence the sentencing, from cooperation to military experience.
Prosecutions of the hundreds charged in the riot are just getting started, offering Americans an initial look at just how severe the punishments will be for those who stormed the Capitol more than six months ago. The first dozen plea bargains reveal defendants could spend years behind bars for ransacking the historic building – and legal experts say harsher penalties loom for those who assaulted police and destroyed property.
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“I would certainly expect that judges would be very concerned about assaults on law enforcement,” said Ian Weinstein, a law professor at Fordham University who has practiced federal law for decades. “I would think that an assault on a police officer is something in my experience that judges take very seriously when sentencing people.”