Trending
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Pennsylvania man was sentenced on Friday to nearly three years in prison for assaulting an Associated Press photographer and attacking police officers with a stun gun during the U.S. Capitol riot.
Alan Byerly apologized to his victims before U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss sentenced him to two years and 10 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Byerly will get credit for the more than 15 months he already has served behind bars since his arrest, according to his lawyers.
"I didn't go to D.C. to harm anyone," Byerly told the judge.
Byerly, 55, pleaded guilty in July to assaulting AP photographer John Minchillo and then activating a stun gun as he charged at police officers who were trying to hold off the mob that formed outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Byerly said he was an "antagonistic jerk" when he confronted the officers. He also said he assaulted Minchillo after hearing a voice say, "That's antifa. Get him out of here."
Minchillo was wearing a lanyard with AP lettering when Byerly and other rioters attacked him on the Capitol's Lower West Terrace, according to a court filing accompanying Byerly's guilty plea. Byerly grabbed Minchillo, pushed him backward and dragged him toward a crowd, the filing says. Another AP photographer captured the assault on video.
"I should have never gotten involved, and I'm deeply sorry for my actions," Byerly said.
Prosecutors sought a sentence of at least three years and 10 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release.