Jan. 6 rioter who attacked police with flagpole draws 20-year sentence

Aug. 9 (UPI) -- A 37-year-old California man has drawn a 20-year sentence after being convicted of assaulting police with poles, pepper spray and other objects during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, authorities said Friday.

David Dempsey, 37, of Santa Ana, Calif., was handed one of the longest sentences given out so far to Jan. 6 rioters during an appearance in a Washington, D.C., courtroom before U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth , federal prosecutors announced .

Dempsey pleaded guilty to two felony counts of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers with a deadly or dangerous weapon on Jan. 4, 2024.

Dempsey told the court of his "profound sense of regret" and offered a personal apology to the police gathered in the courtroom before his sentencing, but as he was being escorted out, flashed a hand symbol commonly associated with white supremacists, ABC News reported .

Prosecutors said he was one of the most aggressive and dangerous of the mob of Donald Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol in an attempt to prevent Congress from certifying President Joe Biden 's 2020 election win.

After attending Trump's "Stop the Steal" rally at the Ellipse earlier in the afternoon, Dempsey was seen standing near a makeshift gallows wearing a black helmet, vest, sunglasses, and an American flag gaiter covering his neck, mouth and nose, where he issued death threats against Democratic congressional leaders and former President Barack Obama .

He was later identified as attacking Capitol Police in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel, the site of some of the most violent assaults against law enforcement on Jan. 6. He was seen swinging flagpoles, broken furniture other dangerous objects at police, spraying pepper spray at officers and striking police with a metal crutch.

The Justice Department noted that in the 43 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,488 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including nearly 550 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony.