President-elect Donald Trump promises to pardon Jan. 6 rioters in the “first hour” of his second term. The U.S. Constitution allows the president to grant pardons for federal offenses except in cases of impeachment.
On Jan. 6, 2021, a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol in an effort to disrupt the certification of the 2020 presidential election.
1,583 rioters have been convicted of various crimes. They range from trespassing to more serious offenses like assaulting law enforcement officers, destruction of government property, and conspiracy.
On the campaign trail, Trump called January 6th prisoners “patriots.” He also called what the Justice Department did to them “unfair.”
Then, for his Time Magazine “Person of the Year” interview, the magazine asked Trump if he would pardon all the Jan. 6 defendants.
“I’m going to do case-by-case and if they were non-violent, I think they’ve been greatly punished. And the answer is I will be doing that, yeah, I’m going to look if there’s some that really were out of control,” Trump said.
While Trump did not issue a formal pledge to pardon all those involved, his comments sparked controversy.
Adam Schiff, the Democratic congressman from California, opposed the idea of Trump pardoning individuals convicted in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. He appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Jan. 5.
“If the president goes forward with pardoning vast numbers of people involved in that violence,” Schiff said. “He will begin his new administration the way he ended his last administration and that is by celebrating violence against our democracy.”
The Justice Department also released new numbers on the Jan. 6 cases Monday. They say there are approximately 300 cases in which a defendant has been charged but not yet found guilty or entered a plea.
Additionally, nearly 180 of those cases involved serious charges. They include assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement agents or officers or obstructing those officers during a civil disorder. Both of those charges are felony offenses.
Trump’s swearing-in and second term in office will begin on Jan. 20.