Jacob Chansley, also known as the “Capitol shaman”, who stormed the US Congress on January 6, 2021, was released early from prison and transferred to a rehabilitation center where he will work.
“After serving 11 months in solitary confinement before sentencing <…>, it was appropriate for this gentle and intelligent young man to be allowed to move on to the next stage, which will undoubtedly be a law—abiding life,” said Chancley’s lawyer Albert Watkins, quoted by The Hill.
The prison bureau said that Chansley was transferred to “community detention” — a punishment that involves working in rehabilitation centers, a psychiatric institution or a public medical institution. It should not last longer than six months, or a longer period may be appointed by a judge’s decision to achieve a specific goal of the prisoner’s rehabilitation program.
In November 2021, Chansley was sentenced to three years and five months in prison. However, now the prison bureau has named another date — May 25 of this year. The department refused to discuss the details of the case of the “shaman of the Capitol”, but, as The Hill clarifies, prisoners can reduce their sentence due to good behavior.
Supporters of former US President Donald Trump broke into the Capitol building on January 6, 2021, when both houses of parliament were sitting there. They had to formally confirm the victory of the current head of state Joe Biden in the presidential election. Five people, including a policeman, were killed during the assault. Chansley was one of the protesters who broke into the office of the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.