Jan. 6 rioter gets 20 years behind bars for conduct judge called 'exceptionally egregious'

David Nicholas Dempsey, of California, received a 20-year prison sentence on Friday for attacking police officers with flagpoles on Jan. 6, 2021 during the riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The sentence is reportedly the longest so far among Jan. 6 rioters. 

According to the Associated Press, prosecutors accused Dempsey of swinging poles at police officers who were defending a tunnel, striking an officer in the head with a "metal crutch" as well as attacking police with "pepper spray and broken pieces of furniture."

Dempsey's actions left at least two police officers with injuries.

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth described Dempsey's conduct as “exceptionally egregious.”