Jenna Ryan, 51, pleaded guilty to illegally demonstrating inside the Capitol building on January 6. She agreed to pay $500 in restitution for damage done to the Capitol during the riot. Prosecutors have cut the same deal for other low-level defendants who weren’t violent or destructive inside the building.
She could face a sentence of up to six months in prison, according to her agreement with prosecutors read at her plea hearing on Thursday, though it is likely Ryan will be ordered to serve much less, or even no jail time, when she is sentenced in November.
Ryan’s plea comes as prosecutors ramp up efforts to resolve cases against defendants that face lesser charges, with four more defendants scheduled to plead guilty this week.
“We’re gonna go down and storm the Capitol,” Ryan said as she livestreamed herself walking to the building, adding “that’s why we came and so that’s what we’re going to do.” Ryan continued to livestream as she entered the building with the mob.
But a few weeks later, Ryan told the Washington Post that she “bought into the lie” and “I regret everything.”
The Justice Department has charged more than 575 people in the massive Capitol riot investigation. So far, 38 people have plead guilty to federal charges.
