It’s not the defense attorney’s fault. Making excuses for his client’s criminal behavior is his job.
Riley Williams (photo, left), 24, is a high-profile Capitol rioter described by prosecutors as “an ‘accelerant’ of the mob” who “‘gleefully directed and mobilized’ violence during the attack” on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 (see story here).
Among other things, she stole a laptop computer from then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, intending to sell it to Russian intelligence services (see story here).
Initially a fugitive, Williams was caught and arrested, charged with multiple crimes, and convicted by a jury in November 2022. During her trial, her lawyers portrayed her as “too young and small to be fully responsible for her actions.”
The judge didn’t buy it. At Williams’ sentencing on Thursday, March 23, 2023, the judge “noted that Williams was ‘old enough to be one of the police officers she resisted,’” and “was there to stop the election, not because her dizzy little head was confused about which building” she was in, “adding that Riley was ‘taking control'” of the mob and wasn’t “just a little waif blowing in the wind.” (Read story here.)
Having been coached by her lawyers, Williams apologized for her actions and acted contrite in court. She got three years in prison.
By the way, I wouldn’t call a 5’6″ woman “little.”