Knoxville man sentenced in Jan. 6 felony case
WASHINGTON ( WATE ) — A Knoxville man has been sentenced to prison time on a felony charge related to the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol, the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia announced on Monday.
"His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election," a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia states.
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According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Michael Asbury, 44, of Knoxville, Tenn., was sentenced to four months imprisonment, 24 months of supervised release, the first four months of which are home detention, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras. Asbury pleaded guilty to a felony charge of obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder on March 20, 2024. The FBI had initially arrested Asbury on June 28, 2023.
Court documents state that Asbury traveled with his cousin from Tennessee to Washington, D.C., in order to attend the "Stop the Steal" rally on Jan. 6, 2021, at the Ellipse. After the rally, the two made their way to the West Front of the Capitol grounds.
After that, video surveillance footage as well as video footage from Asbury's social media show Asbury on a media tower at the West Front, then at the Lower West Terrace amid the rioters' swarm, then at the Lower Wes Terrace Tunnel. Asbury was identified in taking actions against police's efforts to defend the Capitol Building, by joining with other rioters who all collectively pushed together in a "heave-ho" effort against the police line.
Then, Asbury was seen re-entering the tunnel to engage police again, participating in a second "heave-ho" push against police before exiting to cheer on other rioters, documents state.
The Department of Justice says the investigation into the January 6 insurrection remains ongoing.
More than 1,400 people from nearly all 50 states have been charged in relation to the capitol riot, including several from Tennessee .
