Rochester woman sentenced to 10 days in prison for actions during Jan. 6 riot
(Kilat Fitzgerald, KSTP) — A Rochester woman was sentenced to 10 days in prison for her actions at the nation’s capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Victoria Charity White, 41, of Rochester, Minn., was sentenced on Monday to 10 days in prison after pleading guilty to interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder. She was also ordered to serve 24 months on supervised release and 90 days of home detention.
The sentencing comes after a guilty plea she entered on Aug. 17, 2023.
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White was apprehended by Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers during the events of Jan. 6 and escorted out of the Capitol building.
She was then arrested in Rochester on March 8, 2021, before being released with conditions.
Court documents note that earlier this year, she rejected a different plea deal and returned to Capitol Hill, posting pictures on social media.
The judge in her case said White was “cavalier” with the rules and was not forthcoming about her intentions at the nation’s Capital. The judge then added new conditions to her release, banning her from the capitol building unless she received prior approval.
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Court documents say White was part of a mob that converged on the lower West Terrace of the Capitol building after a rally at the Ellipse.
An open-source video showed White arguing with other rioters who were trying to break the glass doors of an entrance. She then pushed her way toward the tunnel entrance, where police stood to prevent rioters from breaching the capitol.
White then raised her fist and cheered rioters on as they chanted “pull the cops out!” and forced a large flagpole down the entryway.
She was then seen pushing her way further toward that entrance and helping hoist up another rioter. That rioter then attacked officers, swinging from the top of the entryway and kicking them as White pointed and cheered.
Around 4:05 p.m., White was then seen at the lower West Terrace entrance.
Court documents say she after she lost her hat and her coat, she grabbed an MPD officer standing on the ledge. Police then fended White off with baton strikes and pushed her back with riot shields. White then grabbed one of the shields and blocked the baton with her hand. It was then that White was detained and taken away from the Capitol building.
So far, 13 people from Minnesota charged in connection to the Jan. 6 riot.
A total of 1,200 people were charged with crimes related to the riot, including 400 charged with felony assaulting or impeding law enforcement.
CLICK HERE to see more KSTP coverage of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.