‘QAnon Shaman’ released from prison, in halfway house

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Jacob Chansley, the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol rioter better known as the “QAnon Shaman,” was released from federal prison early and transferred to a halfway house on Wednesday.

The Bureau of Prisons said Chansley was moved to “community confinement” — a term that can either refer to home confinement or a halfway house; but Chansley’s attorney Albert Watkins confirmed it was the latter.

“After serving eleven months in solitary prior to his sentence being imposed, and only 16 months of his sentence thereafter, it is appropriate this gentle and intelligent young man be permitted to move forward with the next stage of what undoubtedly will be a law abiding and enriching life,” Watkins said in a statement.

The Bureau of Prisons said in a statement that “for safety, and security reasons, we do not discuss the conditions of confinement for any inmate, including transfers or release plans, nor do we specify an individual’s specific location while in community confinement.”

Chansley, who gained national attention for wearing face paint and a horned headdress during the riot, pleaded guilty to obstruction and was sentenced in November 2021 to 41 months in prison.

The bureau now lists Chansley’s release date as May 25 of this year. The bureau declined to discuss the specifics of Chansley’s case, but inmates are able to shave off part of their sentences for good conduct while behind bars.

The attorney for Jacob Chansley, the Capitol rioter more widely known as the “QAnon Shaman,” doubled down Wednesday on derogatory remarks he made about the mental state of those who participated in the Jan. 6 mob attack, arguing that doing so brought attention to the “special needs” of his client.

Attorney Albert Watkins first made comments to Talking Points Memo, which were published Tuesday, that Chansley has Asperger’s syndrome and added that this, as well as former President Trump’s “propaganda,” should be considered in his client’s case.

“A lot of these defendants — and I’m going to use this colloquial term, perhaps disrespectfully — but they’re all f—— short-bus people. … These are people with brain damage, they’re f—— ret*d, they’re on the goddamn spectrum,” Watkins told Talking Points Memo.

In a Wednesday interview on CNN’s “New Day,” co-host John Berman asked Watkins if wanted to apologize for his previous remarks, which also included the argument that the rioters weren’t “bad people” but were “subjected to four-plus years of goddamn propaganda the likes of which the world has not seen since f—— Hitler.”

“Counselor, the Special Olympics says the R-word is a form of hate speech and that the word has become an insult used all too commonly in everyday language,” Berman said.

“Would you like to apologize this morning?” the host asked.

“No,” Watkins quickly responded while shaking his head.

The lawyer went on to say, “For five months, I acted professionally, I talked to the people that needed to know, I made sure that the Department of Justice had the opportunity firsthand to meet with my client … to have them understand and appreciate the condition, the special needs of my client.”

“I let them talk to my client while he is confined, not once, not twice, but multiple times, and I got nowhere,” Watkins said. “All I had to do was get vulgar, get vulgar in a short soundbite-driven quote that permitted this very issue to come to the fore.”

I believe as long as he's not cavorting with people of "bad" character he'll probably just drift into quiet obscurity OR find passage to Dancing with the Stars OR Celebrity Big Brother

Or even..."the Apprentice"!

QAnon Shaman was my favourite insurrectionist (if that's the right word?).

protester
noun
a person who publicly demonstrates opposition to something; a demonstrator.

I am autstic, but I do not have a free pass to do as I like. Nor does the "QAnon Shaman", but if he has served his time in prison then I think he should be considered for release.

What the jan 6th mob did was clearly wrong, but we can not "lock 'em up and throw away the key."

I suppose that you could combine "Orange is the New Black" WITH "the Apprentice". Have Trump the convict star in a in behind the bars reality show in which his devoted incarcerated followers star with their idol.