WASHINGTON — A Hollywood actor who had supporting roles in “Anchorman,” “Mr. Present,” “Arrested Growth” and “Bob’s Burgers” was sentenced to 12 months and a day in federal jail on Monday for his function within the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

Jay Johnston was arrested in June 2023 and pleaded responsible in July to a felony offense of obstructing officers throughout a civil dysfunction. Johnston had lengthy been recognized as a participant within the chaos even earlier than his arrest, and among the skilled penalties — together with not being featured as a voice in “Bob’s Burgers” — hit lengthy earlier than the authorized repercussions.

Federal prosecutors had sought 18 months in federal jail for Johnston, topping their sentencing memo off with a photograph of Johnston wherein he “made gentle of his participation within the riot by dressing up as Jacob Chansley, often called the ‘QAnon Shaman,’ at a Halloween social gathering that he attended” two years after the assault.

Prosecutors mentioned that on Jan. 6, 2021, Johnston spent about 10 minutes within the decrease west tunnel that leads into the Capitol, the place among the worst violence of the assault came about. “Throughout that point, he: (1) helped a minimum of 4 different rioters wash their eyes out after being sprayed with OC spray; (2) used a stolen United States Capitol Police riot protect to make a “protect wall” towards the police contained in the tunnel; and (3) participated in “heave-ho” push that pinned and crushed MPD Officer Daniel Hodges towards a door body,” federal prosecutors wrote.

Regardless of “his clear data of, and participation in, the violence utilized by rioters that day,” federal prosecutors wrote, Johnston “despatched messages to family and friends within the days after January sixth claiming the occasions on the U.S. Capitol had been exaggerated by the media and that it was a ‘setup’ by the police and Antifa.”

Johnston’s lawyer, Stanley Woodward, wrote in a sentencing memo that the federal government has “persistently overstated” Johnston’s function within the assault “as a result of he’s an acclaimed Hollywood actor, and the federal government is utilizing his standing to make some extent to the general public.”

Johnston had “discovered nice success in Hollywood as an actor, author, and producer together with accolades for his function because the voice actor for Jimmy Pesto, Sr. within the animated sequence Bob’s Burgers and as Officer Taylor in Arrested Growth,” wrote Woodward. However Johnston “has not been in a position to maintain his livelihood as an actor after his involvement on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.”

Johnston has “basically been blacklisted by Hollywood” and “has labored as a handyman for the final two years – an apparent far cry from his precise experience and livelihood in movie and tv,” Woodward wrote.

In messages forward of the assault, Johnston wrote to an acquaintance to “Convey meals and a rest room” to what he known as “the gala affair” on Jan. 6, prosecutors mentioned.

Johnston later wrote, in response to a query about whether or not he was going “to rally,” that he was going “going to rally, actually, rally.”

Johnston attended one other rally that includes conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and others on the evening earlier than the Capitol assault after which filmed himself passing “AREA CLOSED” indicators on Jan. 6, prosecutors wrote.

Johnston’s video confirms he heard the sound of flashbangs within the distance and he is heard noting the police presence on the Capitol earlier than he used an overturned metallic bike rack to advance over a stone wall, prosecutors mentioned. He then filmed rioters pushing a metallic “Trump” billboard towards the police line, commented to others that the police had been macing rioters after which filmed rioters “combating the police by pushing bike racks towards them, attempting to interrupt their police line,” prosecutors mentioned.

As soon as he superior to the decrease west tunnel, prosecutors mentioned, Johnston dealt with a stolen police protect after which “joined a bunch push effort, known as ‘heave-ho,’ towards the police within the tunnel” throughout which Officer Hodges “was crushed between the body of one of many doorways within the tunnel and the group.”

Johnston “joked as rioters attacked the police,” prosecutors wrote, together with remarking, “Okay! We’re going to get these gentle bulbs mounted!” as rioters “pushed an orange ladder on the police within the tunnel.”

Greater than 1,500 individuals have been arrested in reference to the Capitol assault, and federal prosecutors have secured the convictions of over 1,100 defendants to this point. Greater than 600 of these convicted have been sentenced to durations of incarceration starting from a number of days behind bars to 22 years in federal jail, for a Proud Boys chief convicted of seditious conspiracy.

Further arrests came about final week, together with quite a few rioters charged with assaulting officers through the assault.