"QAnon Shaman" Jacob Chansley to appeal 41-month sentence for role in Capitol attack
Washington — Jacob Chansley, the so-called "QAnon Shaman" who became one of the more well-known figures of the January 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol, plans to appeal the 41-month prison sentence he received earlier this month for his role in the riots, according to a court filing submitted Tuesday.
Chansley, 34, pleaded guilty in September to one felony count of obstruction for attempting to stop Congress from tallying state electoral votes and reaffirming President Biden's victory on January 6. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth sentenced Chansley to 41 months in prison and three years probation following his release.
But Chansley, a former Navy sailor, and his new lawyer John Pierce filed a notice with the federal district court in the District of Columbia notifying it that he would be appealing his judgment and sentence to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
The move comes after Chansley, of Phoenix, Arizona, fired his attorney, Albert Watkins, on Monday in anticipation of the appeal.
Images from the January 6 assault feature a shirtless Chansley wearing red, white and blue face paint and a fur helmet and carrying an American flag as he marched through the halls of Congress. Federal prosecutors said Chansley ultimately entered the Senate chamber and left a note that said "It's Only a Matter of Time. Justice is Coming" on the desk where Vice President Mike Pence had been presiding before he was evacuated after rioters breached the Capitol building.
The photos of the man called the "QAnon Shaman" from inside the Senate chamber have become among the more notorious from the assault and indicative of the chaos that occurred at the Capitol on January 6. Chansley admitted his participation in the attack to the FBI on January 7.
At his sentencing earlier this month, Chansley told the court he was "wrong" for going inside the Capitol and called his behavior "indefensible."
"I am in no way shape or form a dangerous criminal. I am not a violent man. I am not an insurrectionist. I am certainly not a domestic terrorist," he told Lamberth. "I am nothing like these criminals that I have been incarcerated with."
Watkins, who represented Chansley in the district court proceedings, said his client suffers from schizotypal personality disorder that for years was undiagnosed and mistreated.