Prosecutors placed on leave hours after describing Jan. 6 attack as a 'mob of rioters'

Source: Politico

Two federal prosecutors have been placed on administrative leave just hours after describing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol as perpetrated by “thousands of people comprising a mob of rioters,” according to two people familiar with the move who were granted anonymity to discuss personnel matters.

The accurate description of the attack came in a sentencing recommendation for Taylor Taranto, who was among those pardoned by President Donald Trump for his role in the riot. But Taranto had also been charged for unrelated threats and firearms crimes for which he is slated to be sentenced Friday.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carlos Valdivia and Samuel White urged U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols to sentence Taranto to more than two years in prison for a hoax threat against the National Institute of Standards and Technology and for driving through former President Barack Obama’s neighborhood with a van full of firearms and ammunition.

In their 14-page memo, the prosecutors briefly note Taranto’s involvement on Jan. 6 and indicate that after the riot “Taranto returned to his home in the State of Washington, where he promoted conspiracy theories about the events of January 6, 2021.”

Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/prosecutors-placed-leave-hours-describing-150151232.html