US Justice Department Aims to Dismiss 12 Capitol Riot Convictions

The U.S. Department of Justice has requested a federal appellate court to vacate the convictions of 12 individuals tied to seditious conspiracy charges stemming from the 6 January 2021 Capitol riots. Despite President Donald Trump’s issuance of over 1,000 pardons for those convicted in connection with the riot, he chose to reduce the sentences of a dozen members from the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. This action allowed them to leave prison but left their convictions intact on official records.

In a filing submitted on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, DC, stated,

“The United States has determined in its prosecutorial discretion that dismissal of this criminal case is in the interests of justice.”

If approved, the court’s decision would represent a symbolic triumph for Trump. He had vowed during his campaign to free those charged or convicted for their involvement in the riot, which aimed to prevent Congress from confirming his defeat in the 2020 election to Joe Biden.

On his first day back in office, Trump commuted the sentences of more than 1,500 people, including Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and several others from his group. Rhodes, a former U.S. Army paratrooper and Yale-trained lawyer, led a militia contingent to Washington. His team had concealed weapons in a Virginia hotel room near the Potomac River while engaging in the unrest. Although he did not enter the Capitol, Rhodes directed his members from outside, resulting in an 18-year prison sentence in 2023 for seditious conspiracy or attempting to dismantle the government.

Rhodes is among those appealing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, which has established a 17 April deadline for such requests. If successful, the Trump administration’s justice department would avoid the need to defend the convictions in this process. Meanwhile, former Proud Boys leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, also convicted for seditious conspiracy, received a pardon before his 22-year prison sentence was finalized.