Isreal Easterday, a Kentucky man who stormed the U.S. Capitol carrying a Confederate battle flag, was sentenced to more than two years in prison for pepper spraying two police officers in the face, partially blinding them for hours during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.
Easterday, who was 19 at the time, joined a mob of Donald Trump supporters in invading the Capitol. He used pepper spray to assault two Capitol police officers, Joshua Pollitt and Miguel Acevedo, who were separately guarding the East Rotunda Doors.
Chief Judge James Boasberg cited Easterday’s youth as a reason for handing down a prison term — two years and six months — that was over five times lower than the Justice Department’s initial sentencing recommendation.
Prosecutors had initially recommended sentencing Easterday to 12 years and seven months in prison, but during the hearing, a prosecutor advocated for a sentence of 11 years and three months to reflect the court’s lower calculation of sentencing guidelines.
Easterday tearfully apologized to the officers whom he assaulted, saying he accepts responsibility for his actions and is “deeply ashamed” of himself. At the conclusion of the hearing, Boasberg ordered Easterday to be detained to immediately begin serving his sentence.
A jury convicted Easterday last October of nine counts, including charges that he assaulted Pollitt and Acevedo with pepper spray that he acquired from other rioters.
Easterday traveled from his home in Bonnieville, Kentucky, to Washington, D.C., to attend then-President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House on Jan. 6. A photograph captured Easterday holding a Confederate battle flag after he climbed a tree near the rally site.
After marching to the Capitol, Easterday joined other rioters in storming the East Plaza. He waved his flag as he pushed his through the mob to reach the the East Rotunda Doors, where he separately attacked Pollitt and Acevedo.
Pollitt lost consciousness and collapsed in the mob after Easterday sprayed his unprotected face. A video shows Easterday smirking just before he sprayed Acevedo.
Pollitt pulled other rioters into the Capitol as he entered the building. He spent roughly 13 minutes inside the Capitol.
Easterday, now 23, was arrested in December 2022 in Miami, where his boat was docked for a missionary trip to provide free bibles to churches in the Bahamas.
Prosecutors described the Confederate flag as a “symbol of treason, defiance of the law, and insurrection.” Easterday’s attorneys say he has led an “extremely sheltered life” at his Amish family’s farm in rural Kentucky and didn’t fully understand what the flag signifies.
More than 100 police officers were injured during the Jan. 6 attack. Over 1,350 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes. More than 800 of them have been sentenced, with roughly two-thirds receiving terms of imprisonment ranging from a few days to 22 years.
