Contompasis convicted in 2021 stabbing of two Proud Boys – Times Union

ALBANY A jury quickly convicted Alexander Contompasis of first-degree assault and all other charges Friday for stabbing two members of the far-right Proud Boys outside the state Capitol during a rally on Jan. 6, 2021.

Contompasis, who has been identified on Facebook as an independent journalist and poet, faces the possibility of 40 years in prison after being convicted of the stabbing the menat a "Stop the Steal" rally held in East Capitol Park. It was held the same day that other supporters of former President Donald J. Trump, including Proud Boys members, stormed the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., as Congress prepared to certify President Joseph Biden's victory.

After deliberating roughly three hours and re-watching a video of the incident multiple times in slow motion the jury convicted the 39-year-old Albany manof first-degree assault, which carries up to 25 years in prison;attempted assault in the first degree, which carries up to 15 years in prison;second-degree assault and felony possession of a weapon following a week-long trial before acting Supreme Court Justice Roger McDonough.

Assistant District Attorneys Bryanne Perlanski and Marissa Olsen prosecuted the case, while attorney Jasper Mills represented Contompasis.

Contompasis claimed he was defending himself. Mills said he believed his client was the victim of an organized attack. It all came down to the video, he said.

Watch a video analysis of the melee:

"It boggles my mind. ... It kind of saddens me a little bit that people would see stuff like that and just not think that it was a big deal, or at least not big enough a deal to warrant some kind of self-defense," Mills told the Times Union. "But that's what they did."

Both victims testified, as did Contompasis. In a pre-trial hearing, the prosecutors highlighted Facebook posts that tied Contompasis to antifa, the decentralized movement of anti-fascist groups. The defendant had said he is not a member of any antifa group.

The judge made it clear last week he did not want the case to be about politics.

Ill tell both sides right now: This case is not going to be tried as a pro-Trump, anti-Trump case," McDonough said. "Its not going to be tried as an antifa, Proud Boys case. Its going to be tried on the facts.

The judge ordered Contompasis detained in the Albany County Jail as he awaits sentencing, which is scheduled for Nov. 18.

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Contompasis convicted in 2021 stabbing of two Proud Boys - Times Union