Ex-Boston cop Joseph Fisher sentenced to prison for January 6 riots

A retired Boston police officer was sentenced Friday to 20 months in prison for ramming an officer with a chair and assaulting the officer during the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, officials said.

Joseph Robert Fisher, 52, of Plymouth, was also sentenced to 24 months of supervised release and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. District of Columbia in a statement.

Fisher pleaded guilty in February to eight charges, including assaulting a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder and committing acts of physical violence on the grounds or building of the Capitol, according to court records.

In a letter to the judge filed in court Monday, Fisher said he had been a Boston police officer for 20 years and “could never imagine putting another officer in danger” and that he was “deeply ashamed” of his actions at the Capitol.

“This was wrong and unfair, and I apologize to the officer involved,” he wrote.

Fisher joined the Boston Police force in December 1994 and retired on December 14, 2016. From July 29, 2015, until his retirement, he was assigned to the “Medically Incapacitated Persons Section,” according to the Boston Police Department.

His wife, Debra, is a Boston police officer, according to court records.

Fisher said he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of experiences he had at work, including responding to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, and took his retirement with disability.

Prosecutors said Fisher traveled to Washington, D.C., to attend the “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6, 2021, and following a speech by former President Donald Trump, he joined those who stormed the US Capitol as lawmakers certified Joe Biden's victory. in the 2020 presidential election.

Fisher entered the Capitol at 2:24 p.m., less than 10 minutes after the initial breach, and headed to the Capitol crypt, a space beneath the rotunda, where he took photos and videos while Other rioters chanted “Stop the steal.” » prosecutors said.

Around 2:37 p.m., Fisher reached the orientation lobby of the Capitol Visitor Center, where a U.S. Capitol Police officer was fighting with rioters, prosecutors said. An officer began chasing a rioter who sprayed a chemical irritant, and Fisher moved to help the rioter by grabbing a chair and hiding behind a pillar as the rioter and officer approached from him, prosecutors said.

“Fisher chose his timing carefully, and just as the officer and a rioter passed by, Fisher slammed the chair into the officer, preventing the officer from apprehending the rioter,” prosecutors said in a communicated Friday. “Fisher continued to assault the officer by grabbing and pushing him while another rioter punched and pushed the officer from behind.”

Fisher left the building a few minutes later, prosecutors said. He was arrested in Plymouth on March 30, 2023.

In his letter to the judge, Fisher added that his “actions also harmed the country because of the effect of the disorder on the electoral process.”

“I crossed the line between peaceful assembly and illegal behavior,” he wrote. “My conduct that day was simply unacceptable.”

Fisher decided last fall to plead guilty to the charges without a plea agreement. In his letter, he said he chose to plead guilty “because I want to start righting my wrongs.”

“I want to return to being the positive member of society that I was before January 6, 2021.”

Nick Stoico can be contacted at [email protected].