An Illinois man was sentenced today on charges of assaulting a law enforcement officer and a media member during the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.
Shane Jason Woods, 45, of Auburn, Illinois, was sentenced to 54 months in prison and 36 months of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta. Woods pleaded guilty on Sept. 9, 2022, in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, to assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers and striking, beating, or wounding a person within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States, both felonies.
According to court documents and video evidence presented at sentencing, on Jan. 6, 2021, Woods was among those illegally on the Capitol grounds, joining a mob in the northwestern lawn. At approximately 2:10 p.m., an individual in the crowd sprayed a United States Capitol Police (USCP) officer in the face with a chemical irritant at point-blank range and then ran away. The officer gave chase. As the officer pursued the suspect, Woods—who was standing to the officer’s side and outweighed the officer by over 100 pounds—lowered his shoulder, took several steps, and rammed into the officer, blindsiding them, knocking the officer off of their feet, and sending them flying into a downed metal bicycle barricade. The officer felt immediate pain. The next day, Woods’ assault left the officer feeling as if they had been “hit by a truck.”
Just over two hours later, Woods gathered with numerous other rioters just outside the media staging area on the northeast side of the Capitol lawn. After spending a few minutes verbally harassing the reporters, camera operators, and technicians gathered there, Woods and several other rioters climbed over the metal barricades separating the media from the mob.
Woods then walked around some of the piled media equipment that had been destroyed or was in the process of being destroyed by other rioters and kicked some of it himself. Woods then harassed and circled a camera operator. When the camera operator attempted to walk away, Woods followed them and bumped them with his shoulder. The camera operator continued walking away, trying to leave. Woods then took a running start and hit the operator with a blindside shoulder tackle, sending the operator crashing to the ground and causing them to drop the camera.
Woods was arrested June 24, 2021, in Springfield, Illinois.
The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Middle District of Florida and the Central District of Illinois.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, which identified Woods as #238 in its seeking information photos, as well as the FBI’s Springfield, Illinois, Field Office. Valuable assistance has been provided by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Capitol Police.
In the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,100 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 398 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.
Read more at the Justice Department
