Mr. Fellows, a native of upstate New York, has chosen to represent himself in most of the legal proceedings, but has described U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden as a “modern-day Nazi” running a “kangaroo court.” Because of this, he was charged with contempt in court.
“In all my years as a judge, and even before that as a litigator, I have never seen such contemptuous conduct,” McFadden said in Thursday's ruling, adding that Fellows had “despicable behavior” towards his probation officer. I remember that he also made “comments'' and “outlandish accusations.'' Heckler's remarks to the prosecutor and jury while the verdict was being read.
“There is no grand conspiracy against you here,” the judge said, as his peers continued to interrupt. “It's time for you to become an adult!”
Fellows, who is also a chimney repairman, was not charged with violence, but prosecutors described him as a “cheerleader” for the mob. He tried to avoid being discovered by the FBI by wrapping his phone in foil and erasing its data. His associates reportedly entered the Capitol through a broken window after attending President Trump's “Stop the Steal” rally on the Ellipse.
He smoked marijuana in the office of Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), “paraded” through the Capitol basement with other rioters, taunted law enforcement officers, and marched outside the building at the Capitol. After posing for photos on a police motorcycle, there was a huge uproar. Prosecutors described the attack in media interviews and social media posts.
“He told the jury he was having a lot of fun,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolina Nevin said Thursday. When the FBI captured him, Fellows asked for a marker to write the word “freedom” on her forehead for her mug shot, she said. Nevin blamed the officer for her injuries and she claimed he showed no remorse for his actions.
“The election was stolen, and we have the right to go in and remove the people who made this happen,” Fellows said in a court filing Tuesday that he acknowledged was “rambling.” “I have that right,” he continued. During his sentencing, he gave a 45-minute PowerPoint presentation in which he lambasted “insane people who say men can get pregnant,” accused prosecutors of lying, and said he would spend “at least 20,000 men” in prison. “3,736 hours” was “treated like a fine,” he lamented. They are terrorists with no constitutional rights. ”
Fellows argued that the liberal activist who disrupted Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing in 2018 received a much lighter sentence than he received.
“I didn't think I had committed a crime,” he said, later adding. “Officers were letting people in, saying, 'Everyone, please treat this place with respect.' It seemed pretty welcoming.” Outside the Capitol, people with bullhorns said: He said people were claiming that Vice President Mike Pence had already certified Biden's win, but that turned out to be inaccurate.
Judges are required by law to explain the reasoning behind the sentences they impose, but those in the courtroom are rarely encouraged to add their own commentary. McFadden began announcing the penalties, but he barely got three sentences before receiving the first jeers from the defendants.
The judge said the Fellows, who smoked marijuana inside the Capitol, treated the Capitol like a “fractal house” and showed “utter contempt for the first branch of government.”
“Just like they disrespect the American people,” Fellows interjected. The judge advised him not to interfere. My friends called out to me again.
“Sir, sir! It's a really bad idea to keep interrupting me,” an exasperated McFadden told him.
McFadden said Fellowes' mother had written a letter to the court. Her companions protested that he had asked her not to do so. (She told the judge that her son was a “defiant” person.)
His grandmother submitted a letter, but “she knew nothing about this case!” comrades declared. She thanked the judge for being “more than fair” throughout the trial.
Mr. Fellows rampaged unchecked in the civic halls of his home state, allowing him to enter the Capitol for a riot, or, in his words, “an exciting museum tour with supportive friends.” He claimed to have felt forgiven. New York Capitol Building. “Not only was he able to go up and touch her, but two or three weeks before January 6th, he had sex with her in the car, about 20 feet away from her,” he said at trial.
“I definitely remember that,” the judge deadpanned.
During a video hearing before the trial began, Prosecutors said the gang wrote “kangaroo coat” on a piece of paper and held it up to the screen. The judge's order says that while Fellows was on the witness stand at his August trial, McFadden “answered 'yes' or 'no' to key questions and made no comments about the trial or prosecutors' questions.” “Do not edit it,” he warned. Signed on August 30th.
“While the jury was delivering its verdict, a juror interrupted the warden and yelled at her, “This is how you radicalize people!'' The court thanked the jury for their hard work. “Fellows laughed, 'Ha!'” prosecutors wrote in the filing.
The judge sentenced Fellows to 37 months in prison for the Jan. 6-related conviction and an additional five months in prison for the contempt charge related to the courtroom abuse. The judge said his associates convinced him through the legal process that he suffered from “oppositional defiant disorder” as he claimed.
“Unlike my counterpart, I only shared the truth here,” Fellows said.
