Donald Trump supporter Mark Ponder is facing up to 20 years in prison after rejecting a deal that would put him in jail for considerably less time. Ponder is accused of assaulting several Washington, D.C. Metro Police officers using a flag pole during the January 6 insurrection.
Despite the overwhelming evidence against him, Ponder refused to plead guilty during his court appearance on Monday. He was offered a deal that would have reduced the charges and put him in prison for 5-6 years. Now, he could face two decades in prison if found guilty.
As reported by BuzzFeed, “Ponder was tackled to the ground outside the Capitol at around 2:49 p.m. by a group of Metropolitan Police Department officers. About 25 minutes later, he was allowed to walk away because a police transport couldn’t get through to the Capitol grounds and the officers who’d arrested him were ordered back to the riot to help with crowd control, according to court filings.”
On Monday, Ponder officially rejected the felony plea deal that would have dropped 11 of the counts against him. He made it clear he’d prefer to go to trial on all 12 counts, where he could get up to 20 years in prison.
