Raleigh architect and climate activist Timothy Martin will serve 18 months in prison for vandalizing a display case at the National Gallery of Art, an act he described as civil disobedience meant to inspire action on global warming.
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., sentenced Martin on Monday after a jury found him guilty in April on two counts of conspiracy and injuring government property, charges prosecutors brought after he and fellow activist Joanna Smith smeared washable paint on the case containing an Edgar Degas sculpture.
Prosecutors had sought a five-year sentence. In her sentencing, Judge Amy Berman Jackson gave Martin credit for time served, meaning he will be free in roughly a year. He must also pay $4,250 in restitution, serve two years of supervised probation and complete 150 hours of community service — 20 hours of which must involve cleaning graffiti…