Man who waved Confederate flag pleads guilty in Capitol riot

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
Associated Press

A Maryland man who waved a Confederate flag attached to a lacrosse stick during the siege at the U.S. Capitol has pleaded guilty to interfering with a police officer who was trying to disperse a crowd of rioters. David Blair faces a maximum prison sentence of five years after pleading guilty on Tuesday to a felony charge of obstructing law enforcement during a civil disorder. U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper is scheduled to sentence Blair on July 13. Prosecutors said Blair profanely taunted a Metropolitan Police Department officer and struck him with the wooden lacrosse stick adorned with the flag during a confrontation outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.