By Alan Feuer
In one of his first moves as president, Donald Trump granted a sweeping clemency on Monday to nearly all of the around 1,600 individuals charged in relation to the Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, providing pardons for most of the defendants and commuting sentences for 14 members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers militia, with many convicted of seditious conspiracy.
Trump’s actions represented a remarkable turnaround for rioters facing accusations ranging from minor nonviolent offenses to those who had physically assaulted police officers.
This effectively nullified years of efforts by federal authorities to hold accountable those involved in the mob attack against the peaceful transition of presidential power following Trump’s defeat in the 2020 election. As part of his clemency directive, Trump instructed the Justice Department to dismiss “all pending indictments” against individuals facing charges related to January 6.
While in the Oval Office, Trump expressed hope that many defendants could be released from incarceration as soon as Monday night.
“They’ve already spent enough time in jail,” he remarked. “These individuals have been ruined.”
The pardons issued by Trump — described as “full, complete and unconditional” — will affect approximately 1,000 defendants charged with misdemeanors such as disorderly conduct, trespassing, and entering restricted areas of the Capitol. Many of these rioters had only served a few days, weeks, or months behind bars, if any time at all.
The clemency actions will also clear the records of violent offenders who attacked police on January 6 using various weapons such as baseball bats and bear spray, with some serving prison sentences exceeding a decade.
Additionally, Trump pardoned Enrique Tarrio, the former leader of the Proud Boys, who was sentenced to 22 years in prison following his conviction for seditious conspiracy — a charge requiring the prosecution to demonstrate that the defendant utilized violent force against the government.
A spokesperson for Tarrio indicated he had been released from a federal facility in Louisiana and was expected back in his hometown of Miami by Tuesday afternoon.
Trump’s decisions sparked instant backlash, particularly from some investigators involved in the January 6 cases.
“These pardons imply that if you engage in violent acts on behalf of a politically influential individual, you might evade repercussions,” stated Alexis Loeb, a former federal prosecutor who oversaw numerous riot-related cases. “They diminish — and are detrimental to — the sacrifices made by all the officers who faced danger to uphold democracy on January 6.”
In another action, Trump commuted the prison terms of five additional Proud Boys, some of whom were convicted alongside Tarrio. He also commuted the sentences of Stewart Rhodes, the leader of the Oath Keepers, and eight of his associates.
In total, the commutations eradicated over 100 years of prison time for the 14 defendants, most of whom were found guilty of seditious conspiracy.
The clemency actions were met with excitement by numerous January 6 defendants, their relatives, and advocates who had lobbied for broad clemency. Many rioters had felt emboldened since Trump’s election in November, anticipating his support and pardons for everyone involved in the Capitol assault.
Trump’s maneuvers were essentially his boldest attempts to portray his supporters — and himself — as victims rather than perpetrators of the January 6 events. By granting clemency to individuals who resorted to violence to obstruct the democratic process, Trump lent presidential approval to the rioters’ belief that they were unfairly persecuted political prisoners instead of legitimate criminal defendants.
Legally, the pardons and commutations effectively unraveled the most extensive criminal investigation in the 155-year history of the Justice Department. They annulled all previously filed charges and imposed sentences while halting any ongoing cases.
From nearly the moment the Capitol was breached, investigators toiled for over four years to secure warrants for countless cellphones and Google accounts, sift through tens of thousands of hours of police and surveillance footage, and chase down hundreds of thousands of tips from everyday citizens.
Their efforts led to the prosecution of nearly 1,600 individuals in U.S. District Court in Washington — just blocks from the Capitol. More than 600 defendants faced accusations of assaulting or obstructing law enforcement officers, many armed with various implements including hockey sticks and firecrackers.
Over half of the nearly 1,100 individuals sentenced faced at least some jail time. Tarrio had the longest sentence among all defendants. Close behind was a California Proud Boys member, David Dempsey, who had attacked police with his hands, feet, flagpole, pepper spray, and other weapons, receiving a 20-year prison term.
Both of these sentences will now be nullified, along with those of other far-right leaders like Rhodes, the founder of the Oath Keepers, who was serving an 18-year sentence at the time of the commutations.
It seems that Trump decided to opt for an extensive form of clemency only recently, following discussions with his advisers. In the past months, he conveyed varying messages regarding his approach, at times suggesting he would pardon violent offenders, while at other times indicating that clemency would be reserved for non-violent offenders charged with misdemeanors.
A few weeks ago, Vice President JD Vance mentioned on Fox News that rioters who had attacked police were unlikely to receive pardons.
“If you committed violence that day, you shouldn’t be pardoned,” Vance stated, but acknowledged, “there’s a little bit of a gray area there.”
His statements provoked swift outrage among many rioters.
“J6 defendants are very upset with JD Vance,” wrote Philip Anderson, accused of participating in a violent altercation in a tunnel outside the Capitol, on social media. “All J6 defendants need to be rescued.”
Vance promptly attempted to clarify his statements.
“I assure you, we are concerned about individuals unjustly imprisoned,” he wrote on X, the social platform. “Yes, that includes people provoked and those who received a sham trial.”
