One of three active-duty Marines who stormed the U.S. Capitol together was sentenced Monday to probation and 279 hours of community service, one hour for every Marine killed or injured during the Civil War.

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes said she could not fathom why Dodge Hellonen violated his oath to protect the Constitution from all enemies, domestic and foreign, and risked his career by joining the Jan. 6, 2021 riot which prevented Congress from certifying it

President

Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.

“I urge you to think about why it happened so you can address it and ensure it never happens again,” Reyes said.

Cleverness

Hellonen, now 24, was the first of three Marines punished for participating in the Capitol siege. Reyes will also sentence co-defendants Micah Coomer on Tuesday and Joshua Abate on Wednesday.

The three Marine buddies from the same unit rode together from a military post in Virginia to Washington

,DC,

on January 6, when then-President

Donald

Trump spoke during his Stop the Steal rally near the White House. They joined the crowd that stormed the Capitol after Trump called on his supporters to fight hard.

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Before imposing Hellonen’s sentence, Reyes described how Marines fought and died in some of the fiercest battles in American history. She cited the casualties of some of the bloodiest wars.

Prosecutors recommended short prison sentences of 30 days for Coomer and 21 days for Hellonen and Abate, along with 60 hours of community service.

A prosecutor wrote in a court filing that their military service, while commendable, made their behavior even more problematic.

Reyes said she agreed with prosecutors that Hellonen’s status as an active-duty Marine does not weigh in favor of a more lenient sentence. But in the end, she decided to save him from prison, putting him on probation for four years.

Reyes said it carried a lot of weight to hear that Hellonen maintained a positive attitude and excellent work ethic when he was effectively demoted following the Jan. 6 attack. He went from his work as a signals analyst to a job that few Marines want: inventorying military equipment.

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The only person who can give you a second chance is herself, she told him.

I take full responsibility for my actions and will carry this with me for the rest of my life, Hellonen told the judge.

Hellonen, Coomer and Abate pleaded guilty earlier this year to parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building, a felony punishable by up to six months in prison. Hundreds of Capitol rioters have pleaded guilty to the same charge, which appears to be trespassing.

Hellonen carried a yellow Don’t Tread on Me flag as the three entered the Capitol through a door that other rioters had broken down about seven minutes earlier.

After walking to the Rotunda, they placed a red Make America Great Again hat on one

statuestatue

and took pictures of it. They stayed in the Capitol for almost an hour and joined other rioters in chanting Stop the Steal! and four more years!

None of them are accused of involvement in any violence or destruction on January 6. But prosecutors said none of them had expressed genuine remorse for their crimes.

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Coomer bragged on social media about his participation in history, calling for a fresh start and saying he was waiting for the boogaloo, a slang term for a second US civil war.

Coomer’s statement that he hoped for a second civil war to overthrow what he considered a corrupt government was very ominous, as his military training and access to military weapons would make him a particularly effective participant in such a war against the government. prosecutor wrote.

More than 600 people have been convicted of federal crimes related to the Capitol riot. More than a hundred of them have served in the US military. This is evident from an Associated Press investigation into lawsuits. Only a few were active duty military or law enforcement personnel on January 6.

On January 18 of this year, law enforcement officers arrested Coomer at a military office in Oceanside, California; Abate at his home in Fort Meade, Maryland; and Hellonen at his residence in Jacksonville, NC

According to the Marine Corps, all three Marines were still on active duty Friday. But all three could be separated from the Marine Corps on less than honorable terms, prosecutors said.

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Hellonen received divorce papers in July, while Coomer waited for a decision on his potential divorce last Friday, prosecutors said. They said Abate was still serving in the Marine Corps as of September 1.

Under other circumstances, that service would be incredibly commendable, prosecutor Madison Mumma told the judge. At best it shouldn’t be credited at all.

Hellonen, a native of Michigan, was stationed at the military base in Quantico, Virginia, on January 6. He worked at the Marine Corps Information Operations Center as a communications analyst and was promoted to the rank of sergeant in August 2021, said his attorney, Halerie Costello.

Hellonen moved to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina in February 2022 and was awaiting deployment when he was arrested, Costello said. Hellonen knows he should not have entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, Costello wrote in a sentencing memo.

Associated Press reporter Lolita Baldor contributed from Washington.