WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump issued a sweeping decision Monday evening pardons for almost all of the January 6 defendants, thus erasing the responsibility of those who violently attempted to prevent the certification of the results of the 2020 presidential election on that date in 2021.
Behind the desk in the Oval Office, Trump told reporters that he had signed pardons for nearly 1,500 defendants who participated in the attack and commuted the sentences of several others whose sanctions require “further research,” he declared.
“We hope they come out tonight. They expect it,” Trump said of the defendants.
Journalists out At Washington DC’s Central Detention Center, where many of the Jan. 6 defendants are being held, families began gathering there Monday in anticipation of the pardons.
The White House released the names of 14 defendants whose sentences Trump commuted. Among them are many right-wing militias leaders sentenced of seditious conspiracy.
Among them are Stewart Rhodes of Texas and Kelly Meggs of Florida, founder and current leader of the Oath Keepers, as well as members of the Proud Boys including Joseph Biggs of Florida, Ethan Nordean of Washington, Zachary Rehl of Pennsylvania and Dominic. Pezzola from New York.
All other defendants convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack received “full, complete and unconditional pardons,” according to the order.
Trump called the defendants on the campaign trail “hostages,” “patriots” and “warriors,” and their pardon became a major theme at Trump rallies.
Former US Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn said the pardons marked a “dark day in American history.”
“This decision is a betrayal of the officers who were seriously injured – and died – as a result of the insurrection. This decision puts Americans in danger as these violent criminals return to their communities. These pardons are a reflection of what an abuse of power looks like and what we the people will witness over the next four years,” Dunn said in a statement released by the anti-Trump group Courage for America.
The U.S. Department of Justice has launched its largest-ever investigation following the attack that left more than 140 police officers injured and more than $2.8 million in damage to the Capitol.
At the beginning of January, the ministry had charge just over 1,580 people for riot-related crimes, including 608 charged with assaulting, resisting or obstructing law enforcement, including nearly a third for using a dangerous or deadly weapon, according to the latest figures from the department.
Weapons and items used as weapons brought onto Capitol grounds ranged from firearms and Tasers to chemical sprays and sharp weapons, including knives, axes and even a sword, according to the department.
About 1,000 people pleaded guilty – 682 to misdemeanors and 327 to felonies. Just over 200 defendants were convicted in contested trials, including 10 who were convicted of seditious conspiracy.
Earlier Monday, Trump promised that an overflow crowd at the inauguration at the Capitol Visitors Center would be able to take “action” for the Jan. 6 “hostages.”
He criticized Biden’s preemptive forgiveness of the “unselected committee of political thugs,” referring to the former president’s action Monday morning toward members and staff who served on the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol .
Biden also preemptively pardoned police officers who testified Before the committee. The officers have castigated Trump’s promise to pardon rioters.
Former U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, one of the pardoned officers, said in a statement Monday that he was “simply doing my job and fulfilling my oath” when “US citizens attacked the US Capitol, injuring me and my colleagues.”
“Thank you to President Biden for defending our nation’s democracy, for your years of service to this country, and – in your final moments as commander in chief – for issuing preemptive pardons to me and others Loyal Americans. I didn’t ask for forgiveness and I didn’t do anything wrong. My family and I are grateful for your empathy and leadership.
Last updated at 8:16 p.m., January 20, 2025