SALT LAKE CITY — A southwest Utah man who was wrapped in a Trump flag on Jan. 6, 2021, pleaded guilty Wednesday to a misdemeanor.
WATCH: Utahns charged in insurrection, where their cases stand one year later
Willard Jake Peart faces up to six months in jail when he is sentenced on April 5. If similar cases are any guide, though, Peart will only receive probation.
He pleaded guilty Wednesday to a count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in the Capitol. Photos included in court documents show Peart was wrapped in a Trump flag inside the Capitol, walking near the Senate chamber. He was not accused of any violence or property damage that day.
Peart returned home to Toquerville, Utah, and turned himself into the FBI, according to court documents. He has remained free.
During Wednesday’s virtual hearing, Peart, 46, answered standard questions from the judge but did not offer any explanations for his actions at the Capitol.
Peart did take issue with one item in court documents that said he argued with a police officer as Peart was being escorted out of the Capitol. Peart told the judge he made a “mild” protest to the officer to say he wanted to go back into the building.
“It wasn’t very confrontational at all,” Peart told the judge.
Peart is the second Utahn to plead guilty. Jacob Wiedrich, of Sandy, pleaded guilty to the same charge. His sentencing is scheduled for later this month.
