HAPPY VALLEY, Ore. — A 43-year-old Oregon man has been sentenced to more than three years in prison for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Richard L. Harris of Happy Valley was sentenced Friday. He is one of the more than 400 people charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in D.C. He was sentenced to 41 months in prison and 36 months of supervised release.
On Jan. 6, after attending the Stop the Steal rally, he was part of the first group that breached the Capitol. A selfie video showed Harris shouting, "They tear gassed us. Front f— line baby. We’re storming the Capitol.”
After entering the Capitol, he was in the front of the group of the rioters that overwhelmed Capitol police, then led a crowd that followed another officer into a hallway. Harris pointed in the officer's face, yelling, “Stand down. You’re outnumbered. There’s a f— million of us out there. And we are listening to Trump — your boss.”
While in the Capitol, Harris climbed on at least five statues and placed his blue camouflage "MAGA" hat on the statue of President Gerald Ford.
He also threatened former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, former vice president Mike Pence and a journalist, encouraging another rioter to "throw him over" the Old Senate Chamber on the second floor of the Capitol.
Harris then returned to the Rotunda in the front of a crowd clashing with more police officers. When he found himself face to face with a Metropolitan Police Department lieutenant, Harris grabbed the officer's riot baton and yanked it several times. Court documents said that Harris pulled with such force that he dragged the lieutenant forward several feet into the mob.
He and the others were corralled into the East Foyer and did not leave until forced to by officers. As he exited the East Rotunda Doors, Harris took another selfie video, where he exclaimed, “Front line, baby!” as dozens of officers stood behind him.
Federal prosecutors relied on images taken from videos and social media to help build a case against Harris. In March, Harris was arrested in south Florida, with federal prosecutors charging him with assaulting, resisting or impeding officers; obstruction; and entering and remaining in a restricted building. He was held at the Broward County Jail without bail in the custody of the U.S. Marshals. He was convicted of five felonies and six misdemeanors after a bench trial in June.
More than 1,100 people have been charged across the U.S. in relation to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including nine were from Oregon and Washington.