The Department of Justice is recommending just six months in jail for Ray Epps, the infamous January 6 defendant who was captured on video prior to the riot urging protesters to storm the capitol.
According to the DOJ, the prosecution recommends the following punishment should Epps be convicted of
“For the reasons set forth herein, the government requests that this Court sentence Defendant James Ray Epps, Sr. to six months’ incarceration, which is the high end of the applicable Sentencing Guidelines range of zero to six months. The government also requests that this Court impose, consistent with the plea agreement in this case, $500 in restitution, as well as one year of supervised release,” the memo stated.
The DOJ memo waxed prosaic about Epps’ participation in the so-called unarmed “insurrection.” Thus, its retelling of what happened in January 6 will be provided with bracketed commentary.
DOJ Recommends Six Months i… by Kyle Becker
“Defendant James Ray Epps, Sr. (‘Epps’)—a 62 year-old former Marine, roofer, handyman,
farmer, and venue operator, now retired—participated in the January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol, a violent attack that forced an interruption of Congress’s certification [read: election challenges] of the 2020 Electoral College vote count, threatened the peaceful transfer of power after the 2020 Presidential election [without firearms and without killing anyone], injured more than one hundred police officers [fewer than the BLM riots the previous summer at the White House], and resulted in more than 2.9 million
dollars in losses [while the BLM riots caused billions in damages].”
Matthew Graves, the Department of Justice’s prosecutor, then contrived an excuse for giving Epps a slap on the wrist, despite his multiple documented felony infractions committed during the Capitol Riots.
“Epps pleaded guilty via plea agreement, pre-indictment, to Disorderly or Disruptive
Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1752(a)(2),” Graves noted. “The government’s recommended sentence is supported by Epps’ (1) efforts, both on the evening of January 5 and the day of January 6, to inspire and gather a crowd to storm the Capitol to protest the certification of the election; (2) presence among the vanguard of rioters that overwhelmed police at three key breach points, which opened the floodgates to a mob that became thousands strong; (3) presence and general assistance with pushing a large metal-framed sign into a group of police officers holding a defensive line; and (4) participation in a rugby scrum-like group effort to push past the same line of police officers.”
“The Court must also consider that Epps’ conduct on January 6, like the conduct of scores of other defendants, took place in the context of a large and violent riot that relied on numbers to overwhelm police, breach the Capitol, and disrupt the proceedings,” he continued.
“This is a unique case in the context of January 6 defendants,” Graves pleaded. “Although Epps engaged in felonious conduct during the riot on January 6, his case includes a variety of distinctive and compelling mitigating factors, which led the government to exercise its prosecutorial discretion and offer Epps a pre-indictment misdemeanor plea resolution. Specifically, Epps: (1) turned himself in to the FBI two days after the riot, on January 8, 2021, immediately after becoming aware the FBI was seeking to identify him; (2) cooperated with both the FBI and Congress, participating in multiple lengthy voluntary interviews; and (3) engaged in at least five efforts on January 6 to deescalate conflict and avoid violence between rioters and police officers. He has also expressed what appears to be sincere remorse, although he continues to speciously blame members of Antifa secretly posing as Trump supporters for the violence and property damage that occurred at the Capitol on January 6. Finally, Epps has been the target of a false and widespread conspiracy theory that he was an undercover government agent on January 6.”
This is clearly a case of selective prosecution and favorable treatment. Epps had actually appeared on the FBI’s Most Wanted list in the aftermath of January 6 and was suspiciously removed without a note provided by the agency.
In the aftermath of January 6, Epps gained notoriety for avoiding legal consequences while many other participants faced severe sentencing and endured harsh conditions awaiting trial. He even appeared temporarily on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted until he was suddenly and inexplicably scrubbed from the list.
Speculation circulated, suggesting that Epps might have had ties to the federal government and may have played a role in instigating the riots.
Video evidence surfaced showing him encouraging others to enter the Capitol during the Electoral College’s certification of the 2020 election results.
The night before the Electoral College met, Epps encouraged the crowd to go “into the Capitol, into the Capitol,” and the crowd broke out into a chant of “Fed! Fed! Fed! Fed!”
On the day of January 6, Epps whispered something to Ryan Samsel, the first person to breach the Capitol grounds on January 6.
As Julie Kelly pointed out, Samsel was subject to harsh punishment, while Epps remained uncharged — until today, after two years of public pressure.
Ray Epps is suing Fox News for portraying him as an instigator of the Capitol riot on January 6, despite multiple videos documenting this to be the case.