WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors want a Virginia veteran who entered the Speaker of the House’s office on Jan. 6, 2021, to serve two months behind bars.
Melody Steele-Smith, 59, of Gloucester, pleaded guilty in November to one misdemeanor count of entering and remaining in a restricted building. Steele-Smith’s plea came just as she was set to begin a bench trial before U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss.
In charging documents, prosecutors said Steele-Smith climbed a wall to reach the U.S. Capitol and then entered the building through the Senate Wing doors – the site of the initial breach of the building. Steele-Smith was inside the Capitol for approximately 45 minutes, during which time she entered the office of then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and took pictures she later posted on social media. Steele-Smith also posted an image on social media stating, “We’re storming the Capitol.”
Prosecutors argued in a sentencing memo filed Wednesday that Steele-Smith should serve 60 days in prison. They say despite her guilty plea she has “not demonstrated genuine remorse” and also point to five prior misdemeanor arrests for acts of violence. Two of those arrests resulted in convictions, they said: a 1996 conviction for battery and a 2005 conviction for assault and battery. Steele-Smith was arrested in 2017 on assault charges but was found not guilty at trial.
After the riot, prosecutors say, Steele-Smith downplayed the violence and suggested on Facebook photos of the riot were "staged." She also wrote, "I hope they come for me" — suggesting she had evidence that would show how peaceful the day was.
“Steele-Smith’s lack of remorse for what happened on January 6, coupled with her history of recidivism, demonstrate the likelihood that Steele-Smith could engage in similar conduct the next time her chosen presidential candidate does not win an election,” prosecutors wrote.
If granted, a 60-day sentence would be on the higher end of those received by misdemeanor defendants in Capitol riot cases. Dr. Simone Gold, who entered the Capitol with her boyfriend and gave a speech to other rioters with a bullhorn, was sentenced to 60 days in prison in June 2022 as part of a plea deal. Another Virginia resident, Robert Packer – who lives near Steele-Smith’s home of Gloucester in Newport News – was sentenced in September to 75 days in prison for a lesser count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
As of Wednesday evening, Steele-Smith’s attorney had not yet filed the defense’s sentencing memo. Because the charge she pleaded guilty to carries a recommended sentencing guideline of zero-to-six months in prison, attorneys have routinely requested – and, in some cases, received – probation-only sentences for those defendants.