‘Bob’s Burgers’ & ‘Anchorman’ Actor Jay Johnston Gets Prison Time For January 6 Capitol Attack – Update
UPDATE: The voice actor from Bob’s Burgers who attacked police and others during the MAGA mob siege of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, is going to prison for a year and a day.
Over a year after Jay Johnston was arrested for his active participation in one of the worst days in the history of American democracy, the self-declared “blacklisted” actor was sentenced Monday by a federal judge in Washington D.C. Johnston was present for the sentencing and will surrender to authorities to begin serving his time in the next few weeks.
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The sentence that U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols handed down was less than the 18 months that prosecutors sought. “An 18-month sentence reflects the gravity of Johnston’s conduct, including his spread of disinformation about January 6th and his lack of remorse for participating in the riot,” government attorneys declared in a sentencing filing with the the court earlier this month.
To that end, prosecutors noted that Johnston “made light of his participation in the riot by dressing up as Jacob Chansley, known as the ‘QAnon Shaman,’ at a Halloween party that he attended” in 2022. Sidestepping that insurrection cosplay, the Anchorman actor’s main lawyer Stanley Woodward unsuccessfully tried to keep his client’s prison time to less than a year.
Johnston was fired from the Fox animated series after his January 6 participation became known. His lawyer claimed Johnston was being targeted by the feds because he is an “acclaimed Hollywood actor.”
Nichols wasn’t buying that, and added Johnston to the more than 600 individuals who have been put behind bars for their role in the January 6 siege.
2ND UPDATE, July 8: Former Bob’s Burgers voice actor Jay Johnston today pleaded guilty to a federal charge stemming from his participation in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. He has been charged with civil disorder, a felony.
Johnston, 55, could see a maximum sentence of five years in prison, but sentencing guidelines suggest a from eight to 14 months in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 7.
Johnston’s other credits include Anchorman, Men in Black II and Better Call Saul.
1st UPDATE, June 25: Former Bob’s Burgers voice actor Jay Johnston agreed today to plead guilty to federal charges stemming from his participation in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The 55-year-old actor, whose credits also include Better Call Saul and Mr. Show with Bob and David, faces multiple charges including civil disorder and disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.
His formal change-of-plea hearing is set for July 8 in Los Angeles. Read details of the case below.
PREVIOUSLY, June 7, 2023: Jay Johnston was arrested today in Los Angeles for his participation in the January 6 insurrection and attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The benched Bob’s Burgers actor surrendered to the FBI at its field office Wednesday, a day after the Justice Department issued warrant for him (read it here). Johnston is expected in federal court later today. (Update, 7:45 PM: Johnston made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court this afternoon. He was freed on $25,000 bail and is set to participate in a remote hearing on June 13.)
For taking part in a “group assault,” according to other court documents, Johnston has been charged with obstruction of law enforcement performing their duties as well as misdemeanors of entering a restricted area and hampering the conduct of government business (read it here).
Sought by the FBI since March 2021, the involvement of the man who voiced Jimmy Pesto in dozens of episodes of the Fox animated series wasn’t exactly breaking news. An alum of Mr. Show with Bob and David, Better Call Saul and The Sarah Silverman Program, Johnston was sidelined from Bob’s Burgers back in December 2021 for being among the Donald Trump-supporting MAGA mob that stormed the Capitol that day nearly 2? ago.
As they have with literally thousands of suspects, the feds put out photos of Johnston not long after the January 6 attack:
As the screenshot-heavy documents make clear, the circulation of the images of Johnston got a pretty quick response:
On or about March 8, 2021, an attorney contacted the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center (“NTOC”) and stated that s/he represented JAY JAMES JOHNSTON, who was the individual pictured in publicly disseminated photographs 247-AFO.
The FBI has interviewed three current or former associates of JOHNSTON, all of whom identified JOHNSTON as the individual in the above photographs of 247-AFO. One of these associates provided the FBI with a text message in which JOHNSTON acknowledged being at the Capitol on January 6, stating “The news has presented it as an attack. It actually wasn’t. Thought it kind of turned into that. It was a mess. Got maced and tear gassed and I found it quite untastic.”
Records from United Airlines show that JOHNSTON had a round-trip flight reservation from Los Angeles, California to Washington, D.C. departing on January 4, 2021 and returning on January 7, 2021.
More than 1,000 January 6 rioters have been arrested so far, with nearly 280 behind bars or the about 490 sentenced.
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