President Donald Trump on Monday pardoned more than 1,000 people charged in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, and commuted the sentences of leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.
“These are the hostages,” Trump said from the Oval Office, referring to the convicted and charged defendants. “Approximately 1,500 for a pardon – full pardon.”
The commutations cover the sentences for 14 far-right extremists from the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys who were convicted or charged with seditious conspiracy.
With the pardons, Trump has granted full clemency to hundreds of people already convicted of felony crimes like assaulting police and destroying property as part of the effort to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power.
The “full, complete and unconditional” pardons extend to people who were convicted of some of the worst crimes committed the day of the Capitol attack.
That group includes individuals like Julian Khater, who assaulted US Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick and later pled guilty to assaulting officers with a dangerous weapon; Devlyn Thompson, who hit a police officer with a metal baton; and Robert Palmer, a Florida man who attacked police with a fire extinguisher, a wooden plank and a pole.
More than 140 police officers were injured during the seven-hour siege, which also led directly and indirectly to the deaths of four Trump supporters in the mob and five police officers
More than 730 people have been convicted of misdemeanor offenses in connection with January 6, according to the latest Justice Department estimates. Further, there are about 300 prosecutions still pending in court as of Monday, including many accused of violent felony crimes, such as assaulting police. Trump’s executive order called for those charges to be dropped with prejudice.
After the attack, the Justice Department and FBI launched a nationwide manhunt to identify and arrest rioters, which turned into the biggest criminal probe in US history. Prosecutors charged more than 1,580 people and secured roughly 1,270 convictions.
About 55% of January 6 prosecutions are misdemeanor cases, with charges like disorderly conduct or trespassing, according to Justice Department data. For those convicted, the vast majority were sentenced to probation or a few months in prison and were already released.
Some defendants are elderly people who got caught up in the frenzy. Others went inside the Capitol for a handful of minutes but never attacked anyone or vandalized anything. Most have no criminal record. A large chunk of the people in the mob said they never intended to infiltrate the Capitol, let alone disrupt Congress’ certification of the 2020 election results. Some believe they were waved into the building by police.
Yet, Trump has also called January 6 “a day of love and peace” and claimed his supporters posed “zero threat.” These false claims are belied by hundreds of video clips of Trump supporters beating police with flagpoles, batons, wooden clubs and baseball bats, deploying stun guns and chemical sprays, and engaging in hand-to-hand combat with police officers.
The brother of US Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died one day after being assaulted during the insurrection, condemned Trump’s plan to pardon many of the rioters.
Craig Sicknick recently urged supporters of a liberal advocacy group to sign a petition opposing the pardons, saying it will allow the rioters to “evade responsibility” and that “it’s just plain wrong,” according to a copy of the email obtained by CNN.
“Donald Trump and his loyalists not only celebrate the deadly mob that killed my brother — they are determined to pardon those responsible,” Craig Sicknick said in the message. “It is a betrayal to not only the families and loved ones of those who were injured and killed but to all Americans.”
Monday, Republican Sen. Mike Rounds said he remembers January 6 well and “there was violence. This was this was not peaceful. People were in harm’s way, and it was a very, very bad day for America.”
The South Dakota senator added that he acknowledged the president has the authority to issue pardons and he respects that “constitutionally,” but emphasized, “right now we’re looking forward.”
Pardons vs. commutations
Also included among the 14 individuals whose sentences were commuted by Trump on Monday is Kelly Meggs, an Oath Keeper member and the leader of the Florida contingent of the group who was sentenced to a decade in prison for the seditious conspiracy conviction.
Clemency was also granted to Thomas Caldwell, who was not a member of the Oath Keepers, but led the effort to organize the quick reaction force so that the far-right group could quickly transport firearms into DC on January 6 should they decide it was necessary.
Oath Keepers member Jessica Watkins, who had been serving a nearly nine-year prison sentence for conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding and other felony charges, also had her sentence commuted by Trump.
Pardons don’t erase a defendant’s criminal record and don’t overturn a conviction, though the pardon will be added to their record.
But a pardon forgives the offense and restores the recipient’s civil rights, like gun ownership or voting rights. For convicted rioters on probation, a pardon will end their probation early.
Presidents also have the power to commute sentences of people convicted of federal crimes. For instance, a president can reduce or eliminate someone’s prison sentence, which could pave the way for incarcerated January 6 rioters to be freed from custody.
Unlike a pardon, a commutation does not forgive the crime and does not restore the recipient’s civil rights. Similar to pardons, a commutation does not erase a conviction.
US attorney Matthew Graves, a Biden appointee who oversaw the prosecution of the rioters, last week condemned any possible pardons but said nothing will erase the events of 2021.
“A pardon does not wipe away what occurred,” Graves told CNN.
Americans oppose January 6 pardons
Most Americans oppose these pardons, according to recent polls on the topic that were conducted before Trump took office. Independents are also firmly against pardons for January 6 rioters – but they are very popular among Republicans, according to the data.
One poll found 59% of adults oppose pardoning people who “forced their way into the Capitol.” Two separate surveys found 66% and 62% opposition to pardoning anyone “convicted” in the attack on the Capitol. A poll from Quinnipiac University found 59% of registered voters oppose pardoning anyone who was “convicted and jailed” in connection with January 6.
But a large swath of Trump’s base supports clemency. The Quinnipiac that asked about pardons for already “convicted and jailed” found solid GOP support at 67%.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CNN’s Manu Raju contributed to this report.
