It was easy to spot this right-wing street thug Proud Boy from a distance: he stood roughly 6 feet 6 inches tall and weighed nearly 300 pounds. For his vicious assaults at the Capitol on January 6, Kenneth "Bonehead" Bonawitz of Pompano Beach, FL, was given a sentence of only 5 years in prison for assaulting six officers, causing one officer, Sgt. Federico Ruiz to suffer what will be life-long pain. From the Washington Post story:
"...the force of Kenneth J. Bonawitz launching himself through the air and slamming his forearms into the throats of two police officers standing below him during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot must have been enormous. One officer suffered back injuries such that he was forced to retire in permanent pain.
Bonawitz, 58, wasn’t done. As other officers rushed in, they spotted an eight-inch hunting knife on Bonawitz’s hip and seized it from him. But the police were too overwhelmed to arrest Bonawitz and returned him to the crowd on the Capitol’s West Terrace, where he proceeded to fight with more officers, including putting one officer in a chokehold and lifting her off the ground. He ultimately assaulted six officers before retreating after being hit with chemical spray. Prosecutors called him 'one of the most violent Jan. 6 rioters” and said his attacks' were barbaric and left his victims with lasting physical, emotional and psychological injuries.” (our emphasis)
The officer that Bonawitz put in a chokehold was Metropolitan DC police detective Erika Magnuson, who described her ordeal in a letter to presiding Judge Jia Cobb:
"In a letter to Cobb, she wrote, 'I was attacked from behind by Mr. Bonawitz. Mr. Bonawitz shoved me, wrapped his arms around me, and lifted me off the ground before I was able to break free from his grip. Soon after, an MPD official told me and those around me to retreat up a flight of stairs. From the top, we watched what was left of the police line disintegrate before our eyes.'”
Sentencing guidelines be damned, Federal prosecutors should have asked that this violent Proud Boy street thug be sentenced to 5 years in prison for each assault (also, he was only charged for 2 assaults out of 6 for some reason). He'll be out and causing trouble before you know it. We can only imagine what injuries he would have inflicted had he not been stripped of his hunting knife earlier.
(photo: Department of Justice)
