In 2024, the Department of Justice recommended just six months imprisonment for Ray Epps, the only defendant caught on camera urging people to go into the Capitol building on January 6th. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct on restricted grounds after the incident became the focus of a conspiracy theory. Some right-wing news outlets amplified the conspiracy theory and led Epps into hiding after the January 6 riot. Epps has denied ever working for the FBI and participated in a “rugby scrum-like group effort” to push past a line of police officers, as per the prosecutors. Many are surprised by the recommendation due to the relatively lenient sentence given that other January 6 participants have received much harsher penalties. The media and government here essentially deny the videos of events that are available to the public eye and ear. This is despite clear evidence seen by anyone.
