SALT LAKE CITY — Federal prosecutors are looking for at least a seven year sentence for a Utah man convicted of crimes during the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection.
In a court filing, one of the prosecutors argues that John Sullivan advocated for violence while participating in Utah protests in the summer of 2020. Then, on January, 6, 2021, Sullivan was part of the mob that obstructed certification of the presidential election.
Prosecutors are requesting a judge sentence Sullivan to 87 months in prison, three years of supervised released and about $90,000 in fines and restitution.
However, Sullivan's defense attorney asked that his client be sentenced to just 30 minutes in prison with credit for the six months he has already served, arguing that prosecutors are overstating Sullivan's actions during the riot.
The attorney wrote that he "has seen a dramatic decrease in his mental stability and his overall physical presence" of Sullivan while in the Washington, D.C., jail. That's in part because Sullivan is being kept in a protective unit.
"He is considered to be politically opposed to other January 6 defendants," the attorney added, "and the D.C. Jail made a decision to have him segregated from other January 6 defendants."
