Jan. 6 hearing witness avoids jail time for Capitol riot
An Ohio man who testified at a congressional hearing about why he stormed the U.S. Capitol avoided imprisonment when a federal judge sentenced him on Thursday to two years of probation for his role in the mob's attack.
After his televised testimony at a U.S. House committee's hearing in July, Stephen Ayres approached and apologized to a group of police officers who had struggled to repel the crowd of rioters on Jan. 6, 2021.
Ayres apologized again on Thursday — this time to the court and the “American people” — before U.S. District Judge John Bates sentenced him to probation and ordered him to perform 100 hours of community service.
Bates said he believes Ayres has shown genuine remorse and...
