Woman gets probation for ‘minimal’ role in Capitol riot

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
Associated Press

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — A California architect has been sentenced to probation for joining the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol. The judge who sentenced Valerie Elaine Ehrke on Friday noted that she played a relatively minimal role in the Jan. 6 insurrection. Justice Department prosecutors said they recommended a probationary sentence for Ehrke because she was inside the Capitol for about one minute, only stepped about 15 feet into the building and didn’t engage in any violence or property destruction. Ehrke is one of about 70 defendants who have pleaded guilty to riot-related charges. She was the seventh Capitol riot defendant to be sentenced.