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The defendants, Maxwell Hare and John Kinsman, were among 10 men who prosecutors said attacked four people protesting a speech at the Metropolitan Republican Club by the Proud Boys founder, Gavin McInnes.
The masked protesters, who did not cooperate with the police, were believed to be self-described anti-fascists.
In the sentencing, Justice Mark Dwyer said the punishment was meant in part to deter others who seek to turn political differences into partisan street brawls.
“I know enough about history to know what happened in Europe in the ‘30s,” he said.
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The violence in October last year was captured in photographs and video, generating outrage and prompting condemnation from Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, among others.
The brawl, which took place on East 82nd Street near Park Avenue, was seen by many as mirroring similar clashes between right and left in places like Berkeley, California, Portland, Oregon, and Charlottesville, Virginia.
Both defendants were convicted in August of attempted gang assault, attempted assault and riot. Seven others charged in the incident pleaded guilty.
In court Tuesday, a prosecutor, Joshua Steinglass recommended that Dwyer sentence Hare and Kinsman to five years in prison, saying “violence meant to intimidate and silence” should have no place in society.
He cited a history of conflict between the Proud Boys — who are generally supporters of President Donald Trump and disdain liberals, feminists and Islam — and antifa, a loose affiliation of left-leaning activists who advocate using physical force against people they see as fascists.
“In cities across America these two groups have repeatedly engaged in violence against one another,” he added. “It became clear during this trial that violence is very much ingrained in the Proud Boys ethos.”
The defendants apologized for their actions. Hare, 27, who initiated the attack last October, said: “I made a mistake that night.”
Kinsman, 40, whom a prosecutor had called “the single most vicious of all the attackers,” said: “I regret the entire incident.”
Dwyer also appeared to lay some of the blame for the violence at the feet of McInnes, a co-founder of Vice Magazine who created the Proud Boys in 2016 and who was not involved in the court proceedings. Though he did not mention McInnes by name, the judge referred to the leadership of the group.
“It’s a shame when some people jump up and down on a platform,” the judge said, “and their followers, their soldiers, get in trouble.”
This article originally appeared in
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