Jacob Chansley, the man who became known as the “QAnon Shaman” after storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, has been released from prison to a halfway house. Chansley, 35, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to charges of civil disorder and violent entry to the Capitol in September 2021. He had served just under 27 months in prison when he was released to the halfway house.
“After serving eleven months in solitary prior to his sentence being imposed, and only 16 months of his sentence thereafter, it is appropriate this gentle and intelligent young man be permitted to move forward with the next stage of what undoubtedly will be a law-abiding and enriching life,” Chansley’s lawyer, Albert S. Watkins, said. “I applaud the decision of the US Bureau of Prison in this regard.”
The Daily Mail reports:
As of Thursday, Bureau of Prison Records showed, and his former attorney confirmed in a statement to DailyMail.com, that Chansley was in a Phoenix halfway house after serving just under 27 months in prison total.
Though Chansley’s release comes weeks after his former attorney demanded he be freed in light of new video from the Capitol riot, his move to the halfway house appears to routine under federal prison policy.
Federal inmates can receive a 15 percent reduction in their prison sentence for good behavior, and can also serve the final 12 months of their sentences in halfway houses at the discretion of the Bureau of Prisons.
Chansley was released weeks after Fox News’s Tucker Carlson presented video of Capitol Police leading him throughout the Capitol building. This sparked speculation that the footage could have helped secure his early release. Watkins argued that Chansley should be released after the previously unseen footage was aired. However, the timing of Chansley’s release appears to be coincidental.
Jacob Chansley's Former Attorney Albert Watkins says exculpatory evidence was withheld from his client. pic.twitter.com/CxStlyQqQ4
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) March 9, 2023
After Tucker Carlson showed footage of Capitol Police escorting Jacob Chansley and other “rioters” around the Capitol, as well as footage of Officer Brian Sicknick walking around unharmed, despite repeated claims by the left that he and four other officers were killed that day, many on the left were outraged to see the cherrypicked footage and one-sided narrative of the partisan January 6 Committee fall apart.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene called for Chansley to get a retrial. “Jacob Chansley deserves a retrial,” she tweeted. “All he did was nonviolently walk through the Capital [sic] wearing a costume while being escorted by Capital [sic] Police. I’m sick of the lies and the double standard.”
Many people have argued that the Justice Department has been unfairly targeting January 6th prisoners with excessive sentences and harsh treatment. They point to the fact that many of the rioters were charged with crimes that carry long prison terms, even though they did not commit any violence.
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