A Massachusetts medical doctor has been sentenced to nine months in prison followed by nine months of home confinement for assaulting a police officer during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. The doctor, 70-year-old Jacquelyn Starer, was part of a mob of rioters inside the Capitol when she struck the officer with a closed fist and shouted a profane insult.
Starer expressed regret for her actions that day, acknowledging that she wished reason had prevailed over her emotions. She pleaded guilty to eight counts, including a felony assault charge, without reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors.
During the sentencing, the officer whom Starer assaulted shared her fear for her life as she and other officers defended the Capitol from the mob of Donald Trump supporters. Prosecutors had recommended a prison sentence of two years and three months, while Starer's attorneys requested home confinement instead of incarceration.
Starer, who primarily practiced addiction medicine before her arrest, agreed in January 2023 not to practice medicine in Massachusetts. She had received her medical license in 1983.
Starer attended then-President Trump's “Stop the Steal” rally before joining the mob outside the Capitol and entering the building through the Rotunda doors. Inside, she attempted to push past police officers guarding a passageway to then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, ultimately assaulting an officer captured on video from a police body camera.
Despite her attorneys' argument that Starer's actions were a response to being pushed by another rioter and not motivated by the officer's occupational status, the judge described her behavior as rushing toward the police line “like a heat-seeking missile.”
Starer's attorneys noted that she deeply regrets the incident and recognizes it as criminal conduct. They also mentioned the impact on her career, as she likely has treated her last patient due to the consequences of her actions.
With nearly 1,500 people charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes, Starer is among the more than 900 individuals who have been convicted and sentenced, with varying terms of imprisonment ranging from a few days to 22 years.
