Judge asks why the restitution for damage caused by the Capitol riots is $ 1.5 million when the cost to taxpayers is $ 500 million

A federal judge on Monday asked prosecutors to explain why restitution in the Capitol riots cases was limited to $ 1.5 million for building repairs when the total cost to taxpayers was $ 500 million , by Politico.

To note : The comments by U.S. Chief District Judge Beryl Howell come about two weeks after she questioned whether it was appropriate for prosecutors to offer defendants misdemeanor plea deals in cases where insurgents “terrorize members of Congress”.

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Driving the news: Howell made the comments on the costs at the plea hearing for Glenn Wes Lee Croy, 46, of Colorado Springs, Colo., Who “pleaded guilty to marching, demonstrating or picketing at a Capitol building “after attending a pro-Trump rally, according to KUSA.

What they say : Howell asked why the US attorney’s office sought to “charge only $ 2,000 in each felony case and $ 500 in each misdemeanor case,” the Washington Post notes.

• “I am used to the government being quite aggressive in terms of fraud when there has been damage resulting from a criminal act for the amount of restitution,” she said, according to WashPost.

• “Where we have Congress taking action, appropriating all this money owed directly to the events of January 6, I have found the damage amount to be less than $ 1.5 million – while all of us American taxpayers, are about to foot the bill for almost half a billion. dollars – a bit of a surprise. “

• Prosecutor Clayton O’Connor told the judge he would be “happy” to get his cost question answered, Politico reports.

The context: Last month, Congress passed a $ 2.1 billion Capitol Hill security bill to help cover costs incurred in the deadly insurgency.

Context: Prosecutors announced a riot damage estimate of “approximately $ 1,495,326.55” in June. While it’s not clear how he arrived at this figure, it appears to be linked to damage such as broken windows, according to WashPost.

• A spokesperson for the Capitol architect said the agency “gave damage assessments to the Justice Department, which calculated the penalty per case, and separate assessments to House and Senate officials for wider security costs “, reports the point of sale.

• The U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment on Howell’s final remarks beyond what was said in court.

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