Maryland

Prosecutors seeking multiple years in prison for Maryland Proud Boy for role in Jan. 6 riot

Published

2 years ago

April 13, 2024

Prosecutors seeking multiple years in prison for Maryland Proud Boy for role in Jan. 6 riot

A one-time Maryland leader of the neo-fascist group the Proud Boys is facing multiple years in prison for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Scott Miller, of Millersville in Anne Arundel County, is facing sentencing on Friday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., for his role in the insurrection. He pleaded guilty in January to assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers using a dangerous weapon.

Federal prosecutors on Saturday filed a sentencing memorandum seeking 71 months in prison for Miller, who says he’s broken ties with the violent neo-fascist militant Proud Boys and that he should serve no more than two years in prison.

Miller, 36, is one of about three dozen people from Maryland charged with taking part in the insurrection and more than 1,200 defendants charged by the U.S. Department of Justice.

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In the sentencing memorandum, federal prosecutors said Miller arrived in Washington, D.C., around 3 p.m. and, within 75 minutes, made his way to the Lower West Terrace tunnel and joined the crowd fighting against the police, prosecutors said.

After pushing his way through other rioters, Miller picked up a long pole from the ground and charged toward a line of officers at the entryway to a tunnel leading into the Capitol, prosecutors said. Once there, Miller swung the pole repeatedly at a Metropolitan Police officer identified in court records as L.M., striking her on her body, head, and helmet as she attempted to hold the police line at the mouth of the tunnel.

A still image from a sentencing memorandum filed by federal prosecutors shows Scott Miler, 36, of Millersville, attacking the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riots.

After falling back into the crowd, Miller the threw at least four things at police – including a bottle, a stick, a large black speaker, and an article of clothing, prosecutors said. Miller also found another long pole and attacked police with it, hitting two officers at least seven times, prosecutors said.

Miller also pulled a shield away from a police officer and passed it into the crowd and broke a glass pane on the building, prosecutors said.

After the riots, Miller joined other Proud Boys in an online chat called “Cleared for Entry.” Miller made the last entry in the group chat, noting that someone had been arrested, saying, “Damn he was just on the chat.”

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In a December 2022 search of Miller’s home, prosecutors said, investigators found Proud Boys patches, insignia clothing, bumper stickers and a document indicating Miller held a leadership role in the Proud Boys.

Some of these items had the slogan, “We Are Watching,” prosecutors said. Agents also recovered items with Nazi insignia, including a patch featuring the slogan of the Schuttzstaffel, or SS, a major paramilitary organization under Hitler.

Inside Miller’s closet was a shirt bearing the words “Minneapolis Police” and “CHAUVIN,” a reference to the police officer who has been convicted of the murder of George Floyd in the summer of 2020. Miller wore the shirt as a Halloween costume, as shown by a photograph found on his cellphone, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said investigators found patches bearing Nazi slogans and insignia at the home of Scott Miller of Millersville. Miller, a one-time member of the Proud Boys, pleaded guilty to taking part in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

In seeking a two-year sentence, Miller, a Baltimore native, said in a sentencing memorandum filed Friday that he’s been employed since March 2023 and has complied with restrictions the court has put on his behavior since being arrested.

Miller told the court he joined the Proud Boys because he sought out a sense of community.

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“As he describes it, he joined the group mostly because he wanted to find a group of guys to drink and party with — the fraternity that he never experienced in college,” his attorney, A.J. Kramer, a federal public defender, wrote in the pre-sentence memorandum.

While he didn’t plan on attending the “Stop the Steal” rally that became a riot, Miller was quickly remorseful, his attorney said.

“He immediately understood that what he did was wrong,” Kramer said. “… His conduct was rash and reckless, but it was not planned.”

Miller will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who has handled multiple Jan. 6-related cases.

Brett Barrouquere is an editor on the Express Desk, handling breaking news.

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Maryland

Attempted traffic stop leads to arrest of Maryland man wanted for kidnapping

Published

7 hours ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

Attempted traffic stop leads to arrest of Maryland man wanted for kidnapping

Frederick County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) announced the arrest of a man wanted for kidnapping on Thursday afternoon.

Suba Washington Jr., 27, of Williamsport, Maryland, was apprehended in Frederick after an attempted traffic stop early Thursday morning, according to deputies.

The pursuit

When officers tried to pull over a Hyundai Elantra in the 7300 block of Crestwood Blvd., the driver, later identified as Washington, refused to stop.

Deputies were later notified that Washington was wanted on charges of kidnapping, first-degree assault, second-degree assault, and reckless endangerment in Washington County, Maryland.

As Washington fled northbound on Route 85, he struck a car near Crestwood Blvd. and Buckeystown Pike; however, the driver of the vehicle was unharmed as the suspect continued onto northbound I-270 and then westbound I-70.

Washington’s tires were eventually flattened after deputies deployed stop sticks near the Middletown exit.

Though the pursuit still wasn’t over, as the vehicle managed to cross over into Washington County, where the Washington County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) and Maryland State Police (MSP) aided in apprehension.

Washington was taken into custody after his vehicle approached the Route 40 exit, coming to a full stop on the highway.

The charges

A 17-year-old in the passenger seat was found with Washington during the pursuit. The teenager was released to WSCO.

According to FCSO, Washington Jr. was taken to the Frederick County Adult Detention Center and charged with numerous traffic citations, including reckless driving, negligent driving, and two counts of attempting to elude law enforcement.

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Maryland

Maryland to launch study on economic impacts of climate change

Published

19 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Maryland to launch study on economic impacts of climate change

Maryland will launch a study to analyze the economic impacts of climate change to determine the costs associated with storm damage and health outcomes.

The move is part of the Moore-Miller administration’s strategic approach to investing in a clean energy economy and modernizing the state’s energy infrastructure.

“While the federal government has spent the past year rolling back climate protections and driving up energy costs, Maryland is taking a responsible step toward understanding the true price tag of climate change,” Gov. Wes Moore said in a statement. “This study will give us a clear, data-driven look at the real burden taxpayers are shouldering as climate change drives more extreme and costly weather events.”

The RENEW Act Study will be funded by investments and state sources, including $30,000 from philanthropic funding and $470,000 from the Strategic Energy Investment Fund, to assess the burden that Marylanders are paying due to intense weather events and environmental shifts.

Marylanders on climate change

The announcement comes months after Maryland lawmakers opposed a proposal by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to recind its 2009 endangerment finding, which determined that greenhouse gases were a danger to public health.

Lawmakers raised concerns that the move would mean engine and vehicle manufacturers would not be required to measure, control or report greenhouse gas emissions. They also raised concerns that the decision could impact climate change and harm local communities.

The EPA said it intended to retain regulations for pollutant and toxic air measurement and standards. In September, the agency initiated the formal process to reconsider the finding.

In March, a Johns Hopkins University poll found that nearly 73% of surveyed Baltimore City and County residents were concerned that climate change would affect them.

According to the study, city residents were more concerned about personal harm from climate change than county residents. However, county residents expected to see higher costs in the next five years due to climate change.

About 70% of Baltimore area residents believe climate change will increase costs for homeowners and businesses in the next five years, the study found.

An April report ranked the Washington/Baltimore/Arlington region as the 36th worst in the country and second worst in the mid-Atlantic region for ozone smog. The report graded Baltimore County an “F” for ozone smog.

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