A judge on Friday rejected a southern Minnesota man's plea to have his sentence delayed in hopes of receiving a pardon once Donald Trump returns to the White House, sentencing the defendant to six months of home detention for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol insurrection on behalf of Trump on the day nearly four years ago when Congress certified Joe Biden as president.
Nicholas John Fuller, 41, of Mapleton, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., after pleading guilty to a felony count of obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder in connection with storming the Capitol in a violent but futile effort to prevent Congress from tallying Electoral College votes.
Along with his time on home detention, Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered Fuller to serve three years' probation and pay $2,000 in restitution to the Architect of the Capitol and others.
Also charged with joining Fuller in the attack and awaiting a tentative trial in January are Kenneth W. Fuller, 44, and his son Caleb K. Fuller, 20, both of Cleveland, Minn. The older men are brothers.
Numerous law enforcement body cameras showed the Fullers on the west outdoor plaza of the Capitol during the riot. They all were seen on the plaza resisting police officers, according to the charges.
In one video, as officers repeatedly instructed the crowd to get back, Kenneth Fuller turned and yelled, "Hey guys, they're getting ready to push! They're getting ready to push, guys!"
At 4:24 p.m., all three men can be seen on video descending the stairs, then walking back up to the police line, where Nicholas Fuller and Caleb Fuller can be seen pushing against police to prevent them from moving forward, according to prosecutors.
Defense attorney Michelle Peterson filed a motion Friday with Kollar-Kotelly to have the sentencing postponed until after the other Fullers stand trial and after Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20 of next year, in part, because "President-elect Trump, who played an integral role in the events of January 6, 2021, has repeatedly publicly stated that he will pardon January 6 protestors should he win the presidency."
Kollar-Kotelly, appointed to the bench in 1997 by President Bill Clinton, turned down the delay effort and went ahead with the sentencing, the latest of a handful of Jan. 6 defendants since Trump's victory.
Ahead of sentencing, prosecutors asked the court to send Nicholas Fuller to prison for 11 months, which fell within the federal guideline range of eight to 14 months.
"(Nicholas) Fuller and his family were at the forefront of a throng of rioters intent on confronting and resisting the ever-increasing police force assembled to clear the Capitol Grounds," the prosecution's presentence filing read.
The married father of six and road construction worker said his decision to attend Trump's "Stop the Steal" rally ahead of the resurrection was spontaneous. He paid for the trip with government economic stimulus checks he received during the COVID-19 pandemic, the filing continued.
Nicholas Fuller spent 50 minutes within full view of the police line at the Capitol "alternately praying, chanting, and documenting with his phone his illegal presence inside the restricted area," according to the prosecution filing. "(Nicholas) Fuller pressed against (one officer's) riot shield jostling with the police officer for approximately 20 seconds."
Another video showed a line of officers moving forward, trying to force the crowd down the stairs with their shields, and it showed Kenneth Fuller bracing his back and right arm against the shields, resisting the officers, according to prosecutors.
Buttressing their argument before sentencing, prosecutors also raised Nicholas Fuller's criminal history, which includes convictions for theft, auto theft, first-degree property damage, disorderly conduct and drunken driving.
The defense countered with its request for Nicholas Fuller to be spared prison, serve three years' probation and pay the the $2,000 in restitution.
Nicholas Fuller "has from the beginning acknowledged the wrongfulness of his conduct and has expressed a desire to plead guilty," the defense wrote to the court.
The defense explained that Nicholas Fuller went to the rally "because he believed there were irregularities in the election, which is what he had been hearing on the news and in his community. He wanted to support Trump by showing up to the rally."
Addressing the prosecution pointing out that Nicholas Fuller pushed on an officer's riot shield, the defense wrote, "Mr. Fuller was chatting with and smiling at (the officer) when he put his hands on the shield. (The officer) gently pushed the shield a few inches forward, and (Nicholas) Fuller gently pushed it back. The two did a little back and forth like this and that was the end of it. This interaction was nonaggressive and non-threatening, albeit a stupid thing to do."
According to federal records, Nicholas Fuller is one of 14 Minnesotans charged in the insurrection. Overall, in the 44 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,504 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 560 charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony.
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