Elizabethtown man sentenced to prison for role in Jan. 6 Capitol attacks

An Elizabethtown man was sentenced to six months in prison July 9 for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attacks on the U.S. Capitol.

William "Jessie" Stover, 46, was also ordered by a federal judge to serve 36 months of supervised release and pay $2,000 in restitution, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, which prosecuted Stover and others charged for their role in the attacks. Stover had been charged with civil disorder, a felony, and three misdemeanor offenses in July 2023, The Courier Journal previously reported.

On the day of the attacks, Stover had joined a mob that had "relentlessly pushed against police officers" at an entrance to the Capitol's Lower West Terrace, according to the news release.

Stover arrived in the area around 2:53 p.m. He and others were at one point "expelled" from the entrance, but later returned to continue pushing against the police line, according to the release.

Before being pushed away by police, Stover struck the helmet of an officer and grabbed a Capitol Police riot shield, according to the release. Stover passed the shield to another member of the crowd, who climbed up behind him and then attacked police. The crowd dispersed from the entrance when police sprayed them with chemical irritants.

Stover was arrested July 10 in Elizabethtown, The Courier Journal previously reported. His involvement in the Capitol attacks was investigated by the FBI's Louisville and Washington field offices, which were assisted by the Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, according to the release.

Reach reporter Leo Bertucci at lbertucci@gannett.com or @leober2chee on X, formerly known as Twitter

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Elizabethtown man sentenced to prison for role in Jan. 6 Capitol attacks