“QAnon Shaman” Sentenced

The man who wore face paint and a headdress while taking part in the January 6 raid on the Capitol is going to prison.

Jacob Chansley, who's wardrobe earned him the nickname "QAnon Shaman" and helped him go viral online, has been sentenced to 41 months in federal penitentiary. The Department of Justice asked the judge to give Chansley a harsh sentence in order to make an example out of him.

Chansley's attorneys asked for leniency. In a memo sent to the judge, the defense argued that had already served nearly a year in pretrial detention, which adversely affected his mental health. The defense also claimed that Chansley volunteered to testify at President Trump's second impeachment trial. The filing also said Chansley petitioned the Trump Administration for a pardon in the days after the riot.

"It is time for the Shaman to start on his journey to freedom--not from jail, but from mental health infirmities of significance," Chansley's attorneys wrote in the brief. "It is time for Mr. Chansley to commence his journey from within."

Chansley spoke for 30 minutes before his sentencing on felony charges of obstructing the certification of the 2020 election--charges to which he pleaded guilty in September. During his speech, Chansley quoted the Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and the movie The Shawshank Redemption. Chansley said he wanted to live his like as Jesus Christ and Gandhi lived theirs.

"The hardest part about this is to know that I'm to blame," Chansley told the judge. "To have to look in the mirror and know, you really messed up--royally."