Mechanic Capitol Rioter Gets Eight Months To Fix Himself In Prison

     Paul Allard Hodgkins is a typically odd case among the nearly 600 people facing charges for violently storming the United States Capitol in an attempt to subvert democracy on January 6th, 2021. He worked as a mechanic from a poorer part of Tampa in the poor state of Florida; his status as a former Eagle Scout couldn't keep him from a trailer park lifestyle. Nor could it keep him from going to prison.

     Hodgkins became infamous in his own right for his actions on January 6th. He was the man with the goggles, Trump flag, and Trump shirt pictured mounting the Senate dais. He spent a total of ten minutes in the Senate, and, unlike most of the people charged in this event, he does not have a criminal history, he did not conspire with others to commit the act, he did not assault police, and he did not damage property (most defendants fit at least one of these categories). Still, he boarded a bus almost all the way up the East Coast, attended the "Save America" rally, and took part in one of the darkest days in American history.

     Judge Randolph Moss put it best when he mentioned that it was "not, by any stretch of the imagination, a protest... was an assault on democracy... [and] left a stain on the country that will remain for decades." All the people sentenced thus far have been on the lighter end; Hodgkins is the first felony sentence, and, for the aforementioned reasons, decided to plead guilty and accept responsibility for his actions in hopes of ending his legal journey sooner.

     Hodgkins did not receive probation, as the defense requested, or 18 months in prison, as the federal prosecutors requested. Instead, he received eight months in prison with two years of parole supervision and extensive fines. His own attorney said it best: nothing about January 6th can be defended or played down by any rational person, and Hodgkins will (as he should) bear the shame of his actions for the rest of his life.