Less than a month after being pardoned for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, some former defendants find themselves back in court, facing other criminal charges.
Edward Kelley, who was pardoned for assaulting police at the Capitol, was convicted in November, a jury of conspiring to murder the FBI agents who investigated his Jan. 6 participation, with evidence showing he had a “kill list” of targets. Kelley now argues that conviction should be tossed out, too, saying that Trump's blanket pardon extends beyond that day.
Other defendants are similarly arguing they should be absolved of other alleged crimes, such as illegal gun possession and child pornography, discovered during Jan. 6 investigations, the Wall Street Journal reports. At least one defendant has died in a post-pardon altercation with police.
Weeks after the pardon that freed hundreds of prison inmates and ended remaining cases winding through the courts, life is far from settled for many defendants.
This month, dozens of defendants joined forces on X to publicize the names of at least 124 people who had a hand in their convictions—mainly prosecutors, but also judges and FBI agents. The post of names, with at least 60,000 views, included photos and disparaging remarks, and demands for accountability.
On Jan. 27, county prosecutors in Houston announced a manhunt for Andrew Taake, a pardoned Jan. 6 defendant who was being sought on a 2016 charge of online solicitation of a minor. He had been serving a 74-month sentence after pleading guilty to violence at the Capitol. Prosecutors said he sprayed police officers with bear spray four separate times and struck one with a metal whip.
Federal agents have expressed fears of retaliation for investigating the Capitol riot. After Trump-appointed Justice Department leaders demanded a list of all agents involved, agents sued, arguing it would put them and their families at risk from “the now pardoned and at-large Jan. 6 convicted felons.”
The federal government temporarily agreed not to make the list public while a judge considers a longer-term ban. “If this information were released, I think there’s no question that it would put a number of FBI agents in significant and immediate danger,” said U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb.