Capitol rioters enter first guilty pleas to assaulting police

A New Jersey gym owner and a Washington state man Friday became the first people charged in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol to plead guilty to assaulting a law enforcement officer during the deadly siege.

The pair of plea deals with federal prosecutors could be a benchmark for dozens of other cases in which Capitol rioters are charged with attacking police as part of an effort to halt the certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory. Both defendants face more than three years in prison if a judge adheres to estimated sentencing guidelines spelled out in the plea agreements.

The estimated sentencing guidelines for Scott Kevin Fairlamb range from about 31/2 to 41/4 years in prison. But the judge isn’t bound by that recommendation when he sentences Fairlamb, a 44-year-old former mixed martial arts fighter who owned Fairlamb Fit gym in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey. Fairlamb’s lawyer and prosecutors can seek a sentence above or below those guidelines.

The sentencing guidelines in Devlyn Thompson’s plea deal recommend a slightly higher sentence than Fairlamb, ranging from less than four years to 43/4 years in prison. After Fairlamb’s hearing, Thompson, 28, of Puyallup, Washington, pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer with a dangerous weapon, a baton.

The same judge who accepted Fairlamb’s guilty plea ordered Thompson to be jailed in Seattle.