WASHINGTON, D.C. — Jacquelyn Starer, a 71-year-old former Massachusetts gynecologist and addiction medicine specialist, was sentenced to nine months in prison on Thursday for her involvement in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Starer had pleaded guilty in April to eight charges, including two felony counts of obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder and assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers.
Prosecutors said Starer traveled from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C., to attend Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally, which protested the certification of President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory. After the rally, Starer joined thousands of Trump supporters outside the Capitol, entering the building at 2:51 p.m., nearly 45 minutes after it was first breached by rioters.
Inside the Rotunda, Starer pushed through the crowd and, according to prosecutors, physically assaulted a police officer by punching them in the head. Despite efforts from other rioters to hold her back, Starer continued to push forward in the chaos.