In April 2021, a Georgia business owner was arrested and charged with various offenses related to his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Jack Wade Whitton, 34, of Locust Grove, admitted to assaulting law enforcement officers but claimed he was not a political person or troublemaker. However, videos of his attacks on police were described as “gruesome” by the judge who sentenced him to nearly five years in prison.
Whitton and a co-defendant were seen carrying out violent attacks on police that led to a surge on the Lower West Terrace. Evidence of Whitton’s behavior undermined his claims of innocence. More than 1,350 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol riot, with many already sentenced to prison terms. The ongoing efforts to hold participants accountable for their actions continue as Whitton’s sentence is just one example of the consequences faced by those involved in the insurrection.
