Decision could reduce sentences for Jan. 6 defendants with Tennessee ties

Lina Portman6 days ago

0 2 minutes read

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of some Jan. 6 rioters will reduce the prison sentences of at least two people arrested in Tennessee, their attorneys said after the ruling was issued Friday.

By a 6-3 vote, the nation’s highest court ruled in Fischer v. United States that federal prosecutors applied an obstruction law too broadly in the case of a Pennsylvania police officer who entered the U.S. Capitol and assaulted a federal officer during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. The court ruled that the charge of obstructing or impeding an official proceeding could only be applied in cases where the defendant destroyed records, documents or other items used in an official proceeding.

The Washington Post reported that federal prosecutors have charged more than 350 Jan. 6 defendants with that count, though only some are expected to see an impact on their sentences.

Two attorneys contacted Friday expect the biggest impact of the Fischer decision will be on people for whom the obstruction charge is the only felony conviction related to the Jan. 6 attack.

“Because once the (obstruction) charge goes away, the other charges aren't that important and their sentences are going to be significantly reduced,” said Jerry Ray Smith Jr., a defense attorney for Washington.

Two people arrested in Tennessee appear to fit that criteria: Matthew Bledsoe, a Memphis business owner, and Lisa Marie Eisenhart, the mother of Eric Munchel, the Nashville bartender nicknamed “the tie guy” after an infamous photo caught him stalking the Senate gallery wearing zip ties.

Bledsoe, 40, of Olive Branch, Mississippi, was sentenced to 48 months in prison in October 2022 for obstructing an official proceeding, and 12 months in prison for a handful of misdemeanors to be served concurrently with the longer sentence. When Fischer’s case went to the Supreme Court, Bledsoe’s attorney Smith asked for his release until a decision was made in the case. Bledsoe was released from prison in January.

Smith does not expect Bledsoe to return to prison because he has already served his entire sentence for his misdemeanor charges.

Washington attorney Greg Smith said Friday's ruling “will undoubtedly” impact Eisenhart's case.

Eisenhart, 60, of Woodstock, Georgia, was sentenced in September to 30 months in prison for obstruction. Eisenhart was also convicted of four misdemeanor counts of trespassing and disorderly conduct, for which she was sentenced to 12 months in prison to run concurrently with her 30-month sentence. She was released from prison in January pending the outcome of Fischer's case, which was decided Friday.

Smith expects Eisenhart to get another hearing at which Judge Royce C. Lamberth will determine his sentence for the offenses, which Smith said Lamberth said will not exceed 12 months.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said he was disappointed by the Supreme Court's decision, which he said “limits an important federal law,” but stressed that the decision's impact will be limited.

“The vast majority of the more than 1,400 defendants charged for their unlawful actions on January 6 will not be affected by this decision,” Garland said in a news release. “For those cases affected by today’s decision, the Department will take appropriate steps to comply with the Court’s decision.”

Evan Mealins is the justice reporter for The Tennessean. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @EvanMe A lines.

Lina Portman

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