President Donald Trump pardoned roughly 1,500 defendants and commuted the sentences of others.
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump’s decision to pardon most of the Jan. 6 defendants on his first day in office brought excitement and hope to those close to the detained.
The White House announced the pardons shortly after Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, more than four years after the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach and after the pardoned individuals spent years dealing with the legal system. His pardon affected about 1,500 people, and he commuted the sentences of others.
Robert Morss, who was found guilty on multiple counts, including assault, in 2022, told The Epoch Times that the pardons felt “bittersweet.” Morss pleaded not guilty and, like many others, criticized the way the government responded to the events of Jan. 6.
“All this stuff is finally coming to an end,” he said in a Jan. 20 interview. “You know, we never should have had to endure this as a country, but because we did, our country is stronger for it.”
Susan Sills, whose son Geoffrey was prosecuted in relation to Jan. 6, spoke to The Epoch Times while on her way to pick her son up from a Pennsylvania prison. She said they were both “excited” and would go out to eat to celebrate.
When asked whether she was surprised by the pardons, she said, “Not really.” She indicated there was some room for concern since her son was charged with assault.
Before the inauguration, Trump and Vice President JD Vance offered various indications as to who they would pardon. Vance, for example, said that violent Jan. 6 defendants should not receive pardons and that there was “a little bit of gray area” and that “there were a lot of people … who were prosecuted unfairly.”
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, “approximately 608” people have been charged with “assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement agents or officers or obstructing … officers during a civil disorder.”
Another defendant charged with assault was Luke Coffee, who maintains the guilty verdict he faced was wrong. After his pardon, Coffee told The Epoch Times that he was “overwhelmed with gratitude.”
“This journey has been about so much more than ourselves. It has been about standing firm for truth, even when the odds seemed insurmountable,” he said.
By Sam Dorman
