Jan. 6 Rioter Has Psychiatric History Including Suicide Attempt, Court Told

The Virginia man who taunted police inside the U.S. Capitol and smashed a windowpane near where Ashli Babbitt was fatally shot on Jan. 6 has previously undisclosed psychiatric troubles, including a suicide attempt, that warrant a downward departure from the 11-year prison sentence sought by federal prosecutors, a defense attorney said in a new court filing. The sentencing for Zachary Jordan Alam, 32, of Centreville, Fairfax County, was delayed at the last minute on May 6 after his attorney, Steven Metcalf II, disclosed his client’s previously unreported mental illness. Sentencing for Mr. Alam has already been delayed three times since January. United States District Judge Dabney Friedrich indicated on April 19 that she would not extend the sentencing date, but relented “so that the defendant may obtain records relevant for sentencing,” according to the case docket....