Capitol Riot

DOJ seeks 14 years for Jan. 6 rioter who called Trump ‘dad,' drove stun gun into Michael Fanone's neck

Daniel "D.J. " Rodriquez pleaded guilty in February, admitting he battled law enforcement officers on the steps of the Capitol on Jan. 6

Daniel Rodriguez at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a video presented as evidence.
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Daniel Rodriguez at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a video presented as evidence.

Federal prosecutors are seeking 14 years in federal prison for a violent Jan. 6 rioter who his lawyers say "idolized" Donald Trump and thought of the former president as the "father figure" he never had.

Daniel "D.J. " Rodriquez pleaded guilty in February, admitting that he battled law enforcement officers on the steps of the Capitol on Jan. 6 and tased former D.C. Metropolitan Police officer Mike Fanone in the neck before storming the building and smashing out a window.

The government, in a sentencing memo filed late Friday, sought 168 months in federal prison along with restitution in the amount of $98,927, saying that Rodriguez's crimes were acts of terrorism that deserve an upward departure from the sentencing guidelines. Judge Amy Berman Jackson will sentence Rodriguez on June 21.

A Call to ‘Fight Like Hell,' Then a Riot: Remembering the Events of Jan 6
On Jan. 6, 2021, supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol during the certification of Electoral College votes. NBCLX Political Editor Noah Pransky brings you a timeline of the day and the aftermath.

For more on this story, go to NBC News.

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