KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A southwest Missouri man who breached the Capitol on Jan. 6 carrying a flag associated with the anti-government Three Percenters movement has been sentenced to two years probation.

Joseph Kerry Hicks, 50, of Willard, faced a maximum of one year in prison and a $10,000 fine for convictions on two misdemeanors in connection with the Capitol riot: disorderly conduct in a Capitol building and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

The sentence was handed down Friday by Judge Jia M. Cobb via video conference in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The government had asked that Hicks receive six months’ jail time, 36 months’ probation and 60 hours of community service.

“With the 2024 presidential election approaching and many loud voices in the media and online continuing to sow discord and distrust, the potential for a repeat of January 6 looms ominously,” the government said in its sentencing document. “The Court must sentence Hicks in a manner sufficient to deter him specifically, and others generally, from going down that road again.”

Hicks, a U.S. Air Force veteran, is the 30th of the 37 Missouri residents charged in Capitol riot cases to be sentenced. One defendant has been convicted and awaits sentencing, and the cases of the remaining six are pending.

Hicks at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021

The government’s sentencing memorandum says Hicks tried to attend then-President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally at the Ellipse on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021. He wore a red cap with the words “Trump 2020” and carried a distinctive flag containing a large skull and the words “We are everywhere” and “III%.”

“The flag is associated with the Three Percenter Group, an extremist militia movement whose members believe that a small armed force can overthrow a perceived tyrannical government,” the sentencing document said.

Hicks was told he could not bring his flag into the area where Trump was speaking, so he stayed outside of the Ellipse. After the rally, the government said, Hicks joined rioters at the Capitol and entered the building at 2:41 p.m. through the Rotunda doors on the east side,

“He stayed inside the Capitol for approximately 18 minutes, mostly in the Rotunda,” the document said. “He raised his Three Percenter flag in support of the siege and fist bumped with another rioter.”

Hicks exited through the Rotunda doors, the document said, but returned after about 30 minutes.

“As Hicks approached, his face was obscured by a mask and a hat, and he held a cylindrical object (the flag, now furled),” it said. “Hicks turned his head and his face as he moved forward to avoid the smoke and chemical irritants in the air.”

Hicks tried to push his way into the building, the sentencing document said, as officers on the other side of the door were trying to expel rioters. He eventually backed away and left.

After the Capitol attack, Hicks was labeled “BOLO (Be on the Lookout) #92” by the FBI on its website seeking information about Jan. 6 suspects.

Blamed Antifa, Black Lives Matter

Authorities tracked Hicks down after a search warrant served on Google showed that a cellphone with a number associated with his Gmail account was in the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to the probable cause affidavit.

The FBI interviewed Hicks on June 14, 2021, the government’s sentencing document said, and he said officers had let him into the Capitol building. Video evidence, the government said, showed that was not true. When the FBI interviewed Hicks on Aug. 27, 2023 — while he was in custody — and confronted him about it, he changed his story, saying he was pushed into the Capitol by the force of the crowd and non-officers at the door were letting people inside, according to the sentencing document.

That wasn’t true, either, the government said: “Not only did he stay in the Capitol building for approximately 18 minutes … even after exiting, he tried desperately to go back inside including by using physical force.”

The government said Hicks showed no remorse for his actions.

“He framed the rioters as victims who were just exercising their right to freedom of speech and are now being targeted for standing up for their right,” the sentencing document said. Hicks falsely blamed Antifa and Black Lives Matter, the government said, claiming that they had infiltrated the riot to make Trump supporters look bad.

“Hicks also blamed the ‘deep state,’ including former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, for orchestrating the attack to make former President Trump look like ‘the bad guy,’” the document said.

The government said Hicks had no criminal history. He told the FBI that he came from a military background — his dad and all of his dad’s brothers were in the military.

Hicks’ attorney asked that he be sentenced to probation, arguing that Hicks went to Washington, D.C., to attend Trump’s rally because he believed at the time “that the 2020 presidential election was wrought with fraud.”

“He arrived at the Capitol intending to exercise his constitutional rights,” federal public defender A.J. Kramer wrote in Hicks’ sentencing document. “Mr. Hicks walked from the rally to the Capitol as Trump encouraged his supporters to do. He entered the Capitol once and spent a total of 18 minutes inside.

“Mr. Hicks had no plan, intention, or thought to take over the government on January 6th. He was not part of a militia group seeking to overthrow the government … He did not destroy anything. He did not assault anyone. He did not directly or intentionally engage with police officers at all. When Mr. Hicks entered the Capitol at the East Rotunda Door, it was already open. He did not push the door open. He simply walked in.”

Kramer noted that the government “continues to stress the meaning of the flag that Mr. Hicks carried on January 6th as further evidence that Mr. Hicks had violent or destructive or antigovernment motives.”

“There is no evidence that Mr. Hicks was a member of the 3%ers or that he carried the flag with the intent to portray any specific anti-government message,” he said.

Kramer also stressed that Hicks voluntarily talked to authorities on two occasions about his conduct that day, with no attorney present.

“Mr. Hicks acknowledges that he should not have entered the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and would never engage in similar behavior again,” Kramer wrote. “He recognizes that his presence contributed to the chaos on January 6th. However, he was not the cause of January 6th, nor was he in the category of people who caused physical harm to others or damage to the Capitol buildings. “

Judge dismissed felony charge

Hicks was originally charged with a felony and four misdemeanors on Aug. 21, 2023, then was indicted by a grand jury three months later. Court documents show that he turned down multiple offers for a plea deal, opting instead for a jury trial, then deciding on a bench trial before a judge.

Hicks was convicted at a bench trial in June of disorderly conduct in a Capitol building and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building, both misdemeanors. The judge found him not guilty of one felony and two other misdemeanor counts.

Cobb found that the government was unable to prove that Hicks tried to obstruct officers during a civil disorder, the sole felony charge. She said video evidence did not show beyond a reasonable doubt that Hicks physically intervened with officers.

The judge also said the government failed to prove that Hicks knew the U.S. Secret Service would be in the Capitol protecting former Vice President Mike Pence — a necessary element in determining whether he was guilty of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds or disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.

In his sentencing memorandum filed with the court, Hicks included several letters of support from friends and a supervisor. They described him as faithful, patriotic and respectful.

“We have always known Joe to be a law abiding, peaceful, God fearing man who truly loves our Country,” wrote Sean Trudell. “He would never intentionally cause harm to anyone or knowingly break the law. He has always been a strong supporter of police officers and law and order.”

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