WASHINGTON (AP) – An Ohio man who claimed he was only “following presidential orders” from Donald Trump when he stormed the U.S. Capitol was quickly convicted Thursday of obstructing Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral victory.
Taking less then three hours, a federal jury also found Dustin Byron Thompson, 38, guilty of five other offenses including stealing a coat rack from an office inside the Capitol during the riot on Jan. 6 of last year. The maximum sentence for the obstruction count, the lone felony, is 20 years imprisonment.
Jurors rejected Thompson’s novel defense, in which he blamed Trump and members of the president’s inner circle for the insurrection and for his own actions.
The judge didn’t buy that defense either, though he cast his own blame in Trump’s direction after the verdict was announced.
“I think our democracy is in trouble,” said District Judge Reggie Walton, adding that “charlatans” like Trump don’t care about democracy, only about power.