His sentencing hearing began Wednesday in Judge Michael Newman’s courtroom but was extended to a second day sometime in two weeks, when Werling is expected to address the court.
Attorney Jon Paul Rion, who is representing Werling, said the devices are smaller than two shotgun shells and contain less explosive material.
The purpose of the devices was protective, Rion said, if society were ever to collapse with a breakdown of law and order.
“It was innocent as it relates to the general public,” he said.
Brent Tabacchi, an assistant U.S. attorney of the Southern District of Ohio, said the devices Werling made are inherently dangerous, and that no matter how small, they can be destructive.
“This conduct has such a potential to be arbitrary and it is so dangerous it requires a prison sentence,” he said.
The FBI last April seized explosive devices as well as homemade pipes, explosive chemical components, gunpowder and other materials used to make explosive devices from Werling’s home in the 1400 block of Barnhart Road, according to court documents.
Prosecutors said a sentencing guideline is between 24 and 30 months, and when pressed by Newman, Tabacchi said his office is seeking 24 months.
Werling had previously been listed in Premier Health’s provider directory as a proctologist at Advanced Colon Treatment, with locations in Tipp City and Piqua. He is a doctor of osteopathic medicine.
His license is active but the Ohio Medical Board notes an opportunity for a hearing following his federal conviction.
Werling was prominently involved in anti-vaccine activism during the COVID pandemic. In 2022, he was one of four people on a committee linked to a proposed Ohio constitutional amendment called “Medical Right to Refuse,” according to documents on the Ohio Attorney General’s Office website.
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