WASHINGTON – A Tennessee man was sentenced to prison today after he previously pleaded guilty to assaulting law enforcement during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. 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.

Devin McNulty, 28, of Loudon, Tennessee, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison, 24 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan. McNulty previously pleaded guilty to a felony count of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers.

According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, McNulty was first seen among the crowd at the west front of the Capitol building. From there, McNulty scaled the retaining wall to reach the Upper West Terrace of the U.S. Capitol. In surveillance footage, McNulty, with his distinctive long curly hair, can be seen walking from the west side of the U.S. Capitol to the north side at 2:52 p.m. McNulty then followed the terrace around to the north door of the U.S. Capitol, where a large group of rioters gathered and attempted to breach into the building.

As McNulty approached the north door, he appeared to be affected by a chemical irritant, causing him to turn back to the crowd. Later, video footage shows an alarm coming from the Capitol building as well as loud music in the crowd. Eventually, some law enforcement officers moved between the rioters and the north door. One officer told the rioters, “Get back, everyone get back.” The rioters demanded that the officer let them into the Capitol building. The same officer responded, “I can’t do that.” McNulty was visible to the officer’s right.

Later, additional law enforcement officers arrived to clear the terrace of the rioters. McNulty stood in front of the line of officers and violently pushed against one officer’s riot shield multiple times over the course of several seconds. The officer, a member of the Prince George’s County Police Department, was interviewed about the incident after January 6. The officer claimed to distinctly remember the interaction with McNulty as aggressive and persistent. The officer explained that McNulty tried to gain control of their shields and that the officers had to exert increasingly more effort to counter McNulty’s force.

The FBI arrested McNulty on June 13, 2023, in Atlanta.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section prosecuted this case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee provided valuable assistance.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Knoxville and Washington Field Offices, which identified McNulty as #485 on its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

In the 41 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,450 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 500 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.