Jan. 6 rioter who called for Ocasio-Cortez’s assassination sentenced to more than 3 years in prison
A Texas man who called to assassinate Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) was sentenced to more than three years in prison on Wednesday for actions he took during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
Garret Miller, 36, was sentenced to 38 months in prison over his actions on Jan. 6, including assaulting a police officer, an interstate threat to injure or kidnap, three counts of interfering with law enforcement during a civil disorder and entering restricted grounds. He pleaded guilty to all of the counts in December 2022, and was also sentenced to 36 months of supervised release.
Texas man charged for alleged role in Capitol riots, online death threats to Ocasio-Cortez
He traveled to D.C. to stop the certification of the 2020 election results and brought rope, a grappling hook, a mouth guard and a bump cap to the Capitol, according to the Justice Department’s press release. The department said that during the breach of the Capitol, Miller “was so disruptive on the East Front of the building that he was twice detained, the second time resulting in him being put in handcuffs.”
After he was released, he stayed at the riot and pushed his way into the Rotunda, where law enforcement was trying to remove rioters. He then assaulted a police officer and got into “physical altercations” with at least six others before leaving the building after 5 p.m. that day, according to the Justice Department.
Miller also used social media to threaten officials and public officials, including Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, according to the release.
Miller responded to a post Ocasio-Cortez made on social media that read “Impeach” with his own message, “Assassinate AOC,” on the evening of Jan. 6, 2021. According to the Justice Department’s press release announcing his sentencing, he openly expressed a desire to “start assassinating” and boasted about how he “terrified [c]ongress” after the riots on Jan. 6 up until his arrest on Jan. 20, 2021.
The release also stated that when he was arrested, he was wearing a shirt that said “I was there, Washington, D.C., January 6, 2021,” with a photo of former President Trump on it.
Nearly 1,000 people have been arrested in almost all 50 states for being involved in the Jan. 6 attacks on the Capitol, and about 319 of them have been charged for “assaulting or impeding law enforcement,” according to the release.
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