A Georgia man faced sentencing for his violent actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots, where he assaulted an officer defending the Capitol.
Jack Wade Whitton, 33, received a 57-month prison sentence along with 36 months of supervised release and was ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution after pleading guilty to assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers with a deadly weapon.
During the sentencing, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras condemned Whitton’s actions, particularly seen in violent videos from the riots.
“Those videos were gruesome,” Judge Contreras remarked, noting Whitton’s loss of control during the events.
Whitton expressed remorse during the proceedings, telling the judge that he had changed. His defense attorney, Komron Jon Maknoon, explained in court documents that Whitton had reluctantly attended the rally in Washington at his girlfriend’s insistence after their initial plans fell through.
Detailing Whitton’s actions on Jan. 6, court documents revealed how he assaulted officers, kicked riot shields, and shouted threats. He also climbed walls and threw objects at law enforcement before being apprehended in Georgia on April 1, 2021.
Prosecutors sought a 97-month sentence, highlighting Whitton’s role in inciting violence during the riots.
They show how he had capitalized on the chaos, fueling further disorder that endangered lives and the democratic process.
