Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Man renounces sovereign ideals, gets probation

Sovereign Citizens in Court

Leila Navidi

David Brutsche appears in Las Vegas Justice Court at the Regional Justice Center on Friday, Aug. 23, 2013.

Updated Monday, April 7, 2014 | 10:51 a.m.

A man who renounced his adherence to a sovereign citizen philosophy was sentenced in Las Vegas to five years' probation after pleading guilty to a felony conspiracy to kidnap police officers charge.

David Allen Brutsche apologized to a judge and spoke for nearly 20 minutes at his sentencing Monday.

The 43-year-old Brutsche says sitting in isolation in jail has given him a lot of time to think. He has been in jail since August and will be eligible for release in about six weeks.

Brutsche previously espoused an extremist anti-authority theory that people can declare themselves sovereign and outside the bounds of federal and local legal constraints.

Brutsche pleaded guilty in January to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge in one case.

He pleaded guilty in February to the felony conspiracy to kidnap charge.

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