Sussex County man charged in Capitol riot sentenced to 41 months for assault of officer

A Sussex County man, the first to admit to assaulting an officer during the attack on the U.S. Capitol, on Wednesday was given a sentence of 41 months — the longest received by a rioter who sought to keep President Donald Trump in power on Jan. 6.

Scott Fairlamb's sentence also marks the first among over 210 people charged with assaulting, impeding or resisting police officers during the Capitol riot. Federal prosecutors, who detailed Fairlamb's "swift, violent" assault on a D.C. Metropolitan police officer through videos and screenshots from the terror-filled day, sought a 44-month term.

Fairlamb, 44, of Hardyston, who owned the now-shuttered Fairlamb Fit in Pompton Lakes, pleaded guilty in August to assaulting a police officer and obstructing a governmental function.

His defense attorney, Harley Breite, on Wednesday asked Judge Royce Lamberth, a senior judge in the U.S. District Court of Washington, D.C., to sentence his client to time served or home detention. Fairlamb has been in a Washington prison since his Jan. 22 arrest at his Hardyston home.

Fairlamb, who appeared in person along with his wife, mother and sister, teared up in court as he expressed remorse for his actions: "This is not who I am, not who I was raised to be."

He asked the judge for "mercy" as he detailed how his "irresponsible, reckless behavior" ruined his family's reputation, including that of his father, a deceased New Jersey state trooper, and his "role model" brother, a Secret Service agent formerly assigned to Michelle Obama. Fairlamb said he has not been able to speak to his brother since his arrest out of respect for his position.

Breite called Fairlamb's conduct "aberrational," saying he "lived his life by certain principles" and violated those principles "in one moment, and his whole life is forever changed."

"The sum of any man's life cannot be his worst moment," Breite said.

A decision

Despite feeling that Fairlamb's remorse was sincere, Lamberth found the Metropolitan officer's victim impact statement, part of which was read in court, to be "powerful" — he remarked how fortunate it was the officer was uninjured— and Fairlamb's actions "too serious" to go below sentencing guidelines.

Fairlamb was facing 20 years on each count, but the court's probationary department calculated a sentencing guideline between 41 and 51 months in prison. Lamberth was not bound by those recommendations.

The judge praised Fairlamb for taking a quick plea deal, saying had he gone to trial, "I don't think there's any jury that could have acquitted you."

Fairlamb was also sentenced to three years of supervised release.

Evidence was there

Leslie Goemaat, a federal attorney, pointed to video that captured Fairlamb trailing Metropolitan officers as they walked in line through the angry mob. Fairlamb is seen yelling in officers' faces, "Are you an American? Act like [expletive] ones! You guys have no idea what the [expletive] you're doing." Then, seemingly unprompted, Fairlamb pushed an officer and punched his helmet.

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Prosecutors also submitted a photo Fairlamb took in front of an "Area Closed" sign near the Capitol, smiling with his middle finger up, as well as videos of him him inciting the crowd as he climbed scaffolding. Prosecutors also said Fairlamb's menacing behavior continued in the days after the riot. Three days later, prosecutors said, he took video of himself threatening, "They pulled the pin on the grenade; the blackout is coming. What a time to be a patriot."

Goemaat said the Metropolitan officer who was assaulted did not want to speak Wednesday, but asked the judge to consider the fear he felt when he responded to the Capitol.

A powerful letter

In the letter to the court read by Goemaat, the officer, who was not named, said that with 12 years on the police force, "he had never felt the dread and the fear he felt when he responded to the call that the Capitol had been breached."

"He was alone when he responded to that call. He was alone, he did not have a partner, he did not have a platoon," Goemaat said. "He told the court in his statement 'It was the scariest day' of his career."

In a move for leniency, Breite told the judge Fairlamb has been subjected to "extraordinarily harsh conditions" while housed in the medium-security District of Columbia Correctional Treatment Facility. Breite said Fairlamb had faced physical threats from corrections officers and sought transfer to another prison.

Lamberth said he had no issue with recommending Fairlamb's move to a prison in New Jersey, but it would be at the discretion of the U.S. attorney general.

Fairlamb has raised over $31,000 through the Christian crowdfunding site "GiveSendGo," with hundreds of dollars coming in during the hours after his sentencing. The money, according to the fundraiser, set up by his wife, Andrea, will be used to pay their mortgage, medical insurance, lawyer fees and monthly bills.

Prosecutors asked Lamberth to fine Fairlamb for capitalizing on his crimes, although the judge did not do so.

In the 10 months since supporters of Trump staged a riot at the Capitol building, about 675 defendants have been arrested in nearly all states.

Fairlamb's sentencing has set an early benchmark for judges faced with the cases of over 210 people charged with crimes against police officers or employees on Jan. 6, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. About 140 police officers were assaulted on Jan. 6, authorities said.

Estimates from May 2021 show the attack caused about $1.5 million worth of damage to the Capitol building. Fairlamb was ordered to pay $2,000 toward the restoration efforts.

Before Fairlamb's sentence, the most severe was an eight-month jail term a judge handed down in July to a Florida man, Paul Hodgkins, who breached the Senate chamber and waved a pro-Trump flag.

The stiffest punishment could come on Nov. 17 for Jake Angeli, a so-called QAnon shaman who pleaded guilty in September to obstructing the business of Congress when he stormed through the Capitol shirtless with a painted face, a horned fur hat and an American flag with a spear affixed to the top. Prosecutors are seeking a 51-month prison term for Angeli, who was charged under his legal name, Jacob Chansley, and defense attorneys are seeking his release for time served.

Lori Comstock can be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Capitol riot: NJ man gets 41 months for assault of officer