PRICE OF INSURRECTION

Capitol Rioters Caused $1.5 Million in Damage—and They Should Pay Up, Feds Say

The steep figure was revealed in a court filing for Paul Hodgkins, who pleaded guilty to attacking the Capitol Wednesday.

The U.S. Capitol insurrection cost a whopping $1.5 million in damage—and the feds think the rioters should pay for it, according to court documents obtained by The Washington Post. The figure was disclosed in a filing related to Paul Hodgkins, who pleaded guilty Wednesday to obstructing an official proceeding of Congress. Hodgkins agreed to pay $2,000 in restitution, an amount prosecutors are setting as the bar for felony charges related to the attack. For those charged with misdemeanors, prosecutors are seeking $500. It’s unknown how prosecutors obtained the estimate, though a spokeswoman for the Architect of the Capitol told The Post it gave the Justice Department a breakdown of the damage costs. The breakdown also includes an estimation of each defendant’s ability to pay, making it easier than litigating the liability of each defendant or charging each one with the full cost. “This is a way for the prosecutors to set payment amounts in a manner they think is most likely to be collectible,” said Cortney E. Lollar, a University of Kentucky professor.