President Donald Trump has issued pardons or commuted sentences for nearly 1,600 individuals charged or convicted in connection with the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
The sweeping executive action, one of his first acts after being sworn in as the 47th president on Monday, includes blanket clemency for most defendants and commutations for key figures from far-right groups involved in the attack.
“These are the hostages, approximately 1,500 for a pardon, full pardon,” Trump announced during a signing ceremony in the Oval Office. “This is a big one. These people have been destroyed. What they’ve done to these people is outrageous. There’s rarely been anything like it in the history of our country.”
Among those granted clemency were Stewart Rhodes, founder of the Oath Keepers, and Enrique Tarrio, former leader of the Proud Boys. Both men had been convicted of seditious conspiracy for their roles in orchestrating the violence but had not entered the Capitol themselves.
Rhodes, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison, and Tarrio, who received 22 years, were among 14 members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers who had their sentences commuted. Tarrio, barred from Washington, DC, at the time of the riot, watched the events unfold from a Baltimore hotel room. His mother confirmed that he would return home to Miami on Tuesday after his release from a federal prison in Louisiana.
Trump’s order granted “full, complete, and unconditional pardons” to most of those charged, citing a desire to “end a grave national injustice” and foster “national reconciliation.” Approximately 1,583 individuals faced charges ranging from misdemeanors like trespassing to assaulting law enforcement officers with weapons such as flagpoles and fire extinguishers.
The riot, which occurred as lawmakers gathered to certify Joe Biden’s election victory, left over 140 police officers injured and five people dead, including Ashli Babbitt, an unarmed rioter fatally shot by Capitol Police.
Democrats denounced Trump’s decision, framing it as an affront to the justice system and a betrayal of law enforcement. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was among the lawmakers forced to flee the Capitol that day, called the move “an outrageous insult to our justice system and the heroes who suffered physical scars and emotional trauma as they protected the Capitol, the Congress, and the Constitution.”
Washington state Senator Patty Murray echoed the sentiment, stating, “It’s a sad day for America when a President who refused to relinquish power and incited an insurrection returns to office years later only to grant violent criminals a Presidential pardon or commutation.”
The decision surprised many observers, as Trump’s team had previously suggested case-by-case reviews of riot-related convictions. Vice-President JD Vance and Attorney General Pam Bondi had both condemned violence against law enforcement and signaled that clemency would be selective. Trump’s blanket pardon, however, marked a significant departure from those earlier statements.
Supporters of those pardoned gathered outside the DC jail and other detention centers nationwide, celebrating Trump’s action. “Freedom!” one woman shouted, referencing the president’s description of the defendants as “J6 hostages.” Families and friends of those detained awaited news of their loved ones’ release, which began hours after Trump’s signing.
Derrick Storms, chief legal counsel for Capitol riot defendants, confirmed that prisoners would begin leaving detention facilities before midnight. “We expect freedom for many by midnight,” Storms said.
While critics decried the move as rewriting history, Trump and his allies have framed the pardons as a step toward healing a deeply divided nation.