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Steepest sentence yet: Ex-cop who assaulted police on Jan. 6 gets 10 years [1]
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Date: 2022-09-01
Thomas Webster, pictured left, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the assault of Metropolitan Police Officer Noah Rathbun.
Former New York City Police Officer Thomas Webster, who was found guilty of violently assaulting a police officer defending the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 from a mob incited by former President Donald Trump, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
The sentencing hearing on Thursday ran over two hours, with U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta clearly wrestling over the decision, citing Webster’s lack of criminal history, his service as a U.S. Marine, his 20 years working for the New York Police Department, and his service as a first responder on Sept. 11, 2001.
But Mehta said from the bench Thursday that as the presiding judge he had watched the video footage of Webster assaulting Metropolitan Police Officer Noah Rathbun many times over. And in the end, he simply did not believe Webster’s claims at trial that he was merely engaged in self-defense on Jan. 6.
“There’s no doubt about it. You were the one, with extraordinary force, who pulled [Rathbun] down … and when the barriers opened, nobody pushed you forward. You ran. You charged ahead,” Mehta said before noting this act let thousands of people stream into the Capitol.
Webster choked back tears as he spoke at his sentencing hearing and relayed the deep public shame and humiliation he has experienced.
“I was a hero up until Jan. 6,” Webster said before the 10-year sentence was handed down. “I should not have been there on Jan. 6 to protest the election. I wish the horrible events of that day never happened. People would still be alive, people would not have been hurt. Families would not be torn apart. Perhaps our country wouldn’t be as divided as it is today.”
RELATED STORY: First self-defense trial balloon goes up in flames as jury finds Jan. 6 defendant and ex-cop guilty
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