A Colorado man who showed up to the Capitol riot wearing a 'Guns don't kill people, Clintons do' shirt and got into a 'tug-of-war' with police received a 30-month prison sentence
DOJ
- Thomas Patrick Hamner from Colorado was sentenced to 30 months in prison for his participation in the Capitol riot.
- Hamner showed up to the riot with a "Guns don't kill people, Clintons do" shirt.
- At the riot, he engaged in a "tug-of-war" with officers over a bike rack being used as a barricade, the DOJ said.
A federal judge sentenced a Colorado man to 30-months behind bars on Friday for his participation in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, according to a release from the Justice Department.
On the day of the insurrection, Thomas Patrick Hamner, 49, hopped over barricades blocking the West Lawn of the Capitol building, investigators said. Then he joined a slew of "violent rioters" who pushed against police attempting to keep them from advancing further, the release says.
While part of that crowd, Hamner "engaged with a tug-of-war with a Capitol Police officer and an officer from the Metropolitan Police Department over a bike rack that was being used as a barricade," according to the DOJ.
Hamner showed up to the riot wearing a "Guns don't kill people, Clintons do" shirt, according to evidence compiled by investigators.
He was arrested in November last year and pleaded guilty to a felony charge of interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder in May.
He was indicted on that charge, as well as five others that he had pleaded not guilty to, the release says. Besides the stint in prison, Hamner will also have to pay a $2,000 fine and faces three years of probation when he's released, the DOJ said.
The Capitol riot left five people, including one police officer, dead. Members of the Proud Boys, which is classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, were also present.
Organizers were emboldened by former President Donald Trump's urges to protest the results of the 2020 election with him, despite Democrat Joe Biden's election victory.
In February, insurrectionists scrambled to delete photos and social-media posts proving their participation in the Capitol riot. Some broke their cellphones, scrubbed their social media accounts, and tried to wipe hard drives that might contain photos and other proof of their involvement.
But others boasted of their involvement, making it easier for the FBI to catch and charge them.
So far, more than 919 people have been charged in connection with the insurrection, according to Insider's database.
Hamner's attorney did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.