Trump pardons January 6 rioters
US President Donald Trump has pardoned around 1,500 people involved in the storming of the Capitol building in 2021.
Trump signed an executive order granting pardons in the Oval Office on Monday, hours after he was sworn in for his second term.
The president granted “a full, complete and unconditional pardon to all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021,” the order said. Additionally, 14 people had their sentences commuted. “We hope that they come out tonight, frankly,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
Trump instructed the attorney general to dismiss “all pending indictments” related to the riot. He described the pardons as a measure to rectify “a grave national injustice” and a step towards “national reconciliation.”
On January 6, 2021, a group of Trump supporters broke through security barriers and briefly overran the Capitol building in Washington DC, hoping to disrupt the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election. While some intruders were non-violent, others fought with police officers and destroyed property. One rioter, Ashli Babbitt, was fatally shot by police when she attempted to enter the Speaker’s Lobby.
Trump has never recognized that he lost the 2020 election to Biden, claiming that the vote was rigged. He described the January 6 defendants as patriots and hostages, insisting that their prosecution was politically motivated.
The Democrats accused Trump of inciting the riot and impeached him in 2021. Trump has denied any wrongdoing, dismissing the accusations as a “witch hunt.”
According to The Hill, the pardon applies to Enrique Tarrio, the former leader of the right-wing Proud Boys group who is currently serving a 22-year prison term. His lawyer told the publication that Tarrio was being “processed out” of prison.
