A Kentucky man, who was the first to enter the Capitol building during the Jan. 6 breach, was convicted by a jury in Washington on March 1.
Michael Sparks, 46, was convicted of all six charges against him, including two felony charges. Sentencing is scheduled for July 9.
The charges included trespassing and disorderly conduct, in addition to two felony charges of civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding. He did not testify at the weeklong trial.
Mr. Sparks was accused of jumping through a broken window into the Capitol moments after another protester had broken it, after which he joined other protesters who confronted a police officer inside the building.
Justice Department prosecutor Emily Allen said Mr. Sparks was at the forefront of the breach, and entered the Capitol building less than a minute before U.S. senators evacuated the chamber.
“The defendant was ready for a civil war. Not just ready for a civil war. He wanted it,” Ms. Allen told jurors during her closing arguments.
Defense attorney Scott Wendelsdorf said that Mr. Sparks wished to plead guilty to the four misdemeanor counts, but pushed for an acquittal on the felony charges.
Mr. Wendelsdorf accused prosecutors of trying to blame Mr. Sparks unjustly for damage caused by other protesters, and that Mr. Sparks had left the scene shortly after learning that then-Vice President Mike Pence would not agree to allow time for Congress to hear challenges from various states’ alternate electors.
“Michael Sparks may have started the game, according to the government, but he was out of the game on the sidelines before the first quarter was over,” the defense attorney told jurors.
Mr. Sparks, along with a group of co-workers from an electronics and components plant in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, had traveled to Washington to attend former President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House on Jan. 6.
Mr. Sparks and a co-worker then joined a crowd in marching to the Capitol, before making their way to the front of the crowd. He then entered through the broken window—despite others telling him not to, according to Ms. Allen.
Inside the building, he was confronted by a police officer and was pepper-sprayed, before joining a crowd who chased a policeman up a stairway. The police officer found backup at the top of the stairs, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Washington.
Mr. Sparks sent a text message to his mother the next day, saying he would go again if given the opportunity. He returned to Kentucky on Jan. 7, by which time images of him had circulated online. He was arrested following a tip-off. Ms. Allen said Mr. Sparks showed no remorse for his actions.
Mr. Sparks contacted the Metropolitan Police Department on his way home, and offered to turn himself in, according to prosecutors. He was arrested on Jan. 19, 2021, and indicted on Feb. 5, 2021. A superseding indictment followed on Nov. 10, 2021.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
