An Ohio man who rigged his Jeep to crash near a Secret Service guard stall at the White House was sentenced to almost three years in prison on Friday.
Kettering resident Joseph Reel received a 35-month prison sentencing this week, after he pleaded guilty to committing acts against the government by setting up his unoccupied vehicle to slam into the governmental residence.
His sentencing was part of a plea deal, the Associated Press reported, which also includes a fine for $5,345 which is expected to cover damages caused by the June 9 collision.
Reel admitted to fixing his Jeep so that it would veer off the road and into the guard post, AP reported. Police arrested him shortly thereafter, and he confessed in follow-up interrogations that he had further plans to spray paint a "don't tread on me snake" on the White House.
He said at the time that he thought it might inspire other citizens to "stand up against the government," according to the Associated Press.
The Columbus Dispatch reported that Reel devised an elaborate plan to carry out his demonstration. He left his home in Kettering on June 6, then bought a can of green spray paint from a Frederick, Md. Walmart. The day after that, he drove into Washington and left his car at the Arlington National Cemetery while he walked around the White House and various national monuments "in an effort to educate himself on the security measures."
Reel called law enforcement officials at 3:04 a.m. on June 9 with reports of "a threat made against the president of the United States."
"There was a Secret Service guy I was talking to," he told the 911 dispatcher. "They were saying that they were going to stage something outside of the White House, like a car wreck."
Reel rigged his Jeep to crash into the barrier four minutes later, the Dispatch reported. When he tried to get away by jumping a fence, he was arrested by several Secret Service officers.
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