Capitol rioter Jenna Ryan, the Texas real estate broker who brag-tweeted in March, “Sorry I have blonde hair white skin a great job a great future and I’m not going to jail,” is headed to prison after all.
Ryan was sentenced to 60 days in prison for her role in the Jan. 6 riot, according to HuffPost. Ryan faced four charges, ultimately pleading guilty to one misdemeanor charge and agreeing to pay $500 in restitution for damages.
“I don’t think you could have missed the fact that this was no peaceful protest,” said U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper, who handed down the sentence. He also made it clear that Ryan was being punished for how she expressed her political views, not the sentiments themselves.
Prior to her sentencing, Ryan defended herself in a letter to the judge, saying, “Some actions I took that day were good.”
“I came to DC to protest the election results,” Ryan said, according to HuffPost. “I wanted my voice to be heard. My only weapon was my voice and my cell phone.”
In response to her infamous tweet, Ryan suggested that she could simply stop using the social media platform. The judge advised Ryan to reconsider her news sources in the future, a clear reference to misinformation surrounding the 2020 election that prompted the riot..
Ryan faced up to six months in prison, although a maximum sentence wasn’t likely. The owner of Frisco-based First Place Real Estate said in January that she was following then-President Trump’s instructions and “displaying her patriotism.”
The following month, she appeared to show contrition, calling the situation “embarrassing.” But a month after that, Ryan doubled down on her defiance in the tweet.
Ryan is one of more than 650 people who were arrested as a result of the riot, according to HuffPost.
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[HuffPost] — Holden Walter-Warner