How does a judge call an act treason and then hand out a sentence of

[malaise]

eight months in prison. Meanwhile in another court, a man who threatened a judge received 18 months
--------------------------
Paul Allard Hodgkins, 38, of Tampa, was arrested in February after the FBI received a tip identifying him carrying a large “Trump 2020” flag on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

Hodgkins pleaded guilty in June to a single felony count of obstructing an official proceeding. The felony carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Following his prison sentence, Hodgkins will be placed under two years of supervised release.
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/19/florida-man-gets-8-months-in-prison-in-first-felony-sentence-from-capitol-riot.html will be placed under two years of supervised release.

[Ocelot II]

1. Because he wasn't charged with or convicted of treason, but only of a single felony,

obstructing an official proceeding. And the judge didn't even call it treason, a specific Constitutional crime involving offering aid and comfort to an enemy, which has been interpreted as meaning a foreign force during a declared war. Eight months is a light sentence but it's within the sentencing guidelines, and the asshole now is a convicted felon, which is going to fuck up the rest of his life.

[malaise]

3. OK

Thanks for the clarification and yes he is a convicted felon

[Darwins_Retriever]

16. Also to convict a person of treason

Either
1. A confession in open court to the act of treason.

or
2. The testifying in open court by two eye witnesses to the act of treason.

[pwb]

2. Good Laywers will get these sentences reduced.

Last edited Thu Jul 22, 2021, 08:39 PM - Edit history (1)

That is what they do. The charge and guilt is what stays. Felony probation means piss tests weekly, no guns, no voting and no life for maybe 5 years. So it does hurt.

[malaise]

4. I like what stays

Still I was surprised that he only received eight months

[TexasTowelie]

5. He received two years of supervised release.

However, if he has to report in weekly then the probation fees are going to put a dent into his wallet. He was working as an apprentice mechanic and will likely lose his job so his future doesn't look rosy.

[The Magistrate]

6. The Judge Was Kind, Ma'am

Three things stand out from the accounts.

Most important, the judge felt the man's contrition genuine. This is something I cannot second-guess. I have never met either the felon or the judge, nor have I seen any of the pre-sentence reports. Federal judges, at least, take these very seriously, and the people who put them together are skilled at what they do, and not easy to fool.

The felon pled out, and did so promptly. It is reported he was the first to do so. The whole system is oriented towards getting a guilty plea rather than a trial, and throwing yourself upon the mercy of the court has to give a defendant some benefit, or there is no incentive to do so.

His lawyer was an ass, and presented sound arguments for the judge to impose a stiffer sentence, whatever the hell he thought he was doing. I saw in one report the felon's mother told the lawyer in court 'you talk too much' and she was right. Her son is fortunate the judge drew a distinction between the lawyer's pleadings, and the man in whose interest they purported to be.

[malaise]

8. Thank you Sir

as always

[liberal N proud]

7. Smoking a joint will get you more time than trying to overthrow the government

[malaise]

9. First thing I thought

or voting while still on probation

[lagomorph777]

17. No big deal to overturn votes, but heaven forbid you exercise your vote.

[onenote]

10. Haven't heard of anyone getting 8 months for smoking a joint in quite some time.

Where do you live?

[liberal N proud]

13. A red state

[grantcart]

11. Treason?

Not even close. Treason is specifically defined in the constitution and requires an act supporting an enemy during war.

Any judge who used that specific term should have to repeat his constitutional law class.

[brooklynite]

15. The Judge didn't use the term "treason".

[SoCalDavidS]

12. Because This Is America

And people here at DU still think TFG will be held accountable.

[brooklynite]

14. Because the "act" in aggregate doesn't mean that everyone involved is equally guilty

The Prosecution (that would be the Biden DOJ) was only asking for 18 months.

[Tomconroy]

18. Somebody else was quicker to post it than me

But when Tommy Chong found out the sentence he tweeted: Damn I got nine months for selling bongs!