Wyden, Merkley Co-Sponsor Resolution Condemning Pardons of Criminals Convicted of Assaulting Capitol Police Officers
Resolution is a direct response to Trump pardoning more than 1,500 Jan 6 insurrectionists—including those convicted of violent assaults on police officers
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced they have joined 47 of their Senate colleagues to introduce a resolution condemning the pardons of individuals found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers on Jan. 6, 2021.
“America continues to suffer the scars of Jan. 6 as nothing less than a violent assault on democracy, our Capitol and those who protect and serve our country,” Wyden said. “Donald Trump encouraged that assault four years ago and last week acted shamelessly to rewrite this bloody history by throwing open the prison gates and letting these violent criminals walk free out on the street. Congress cannot let this unprecedented attack go unchecked.”
“President Trump’s day one priority in office was to pardon the insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol and assaulted police officers in a failed attempt to upend the peaceful transfer of power and our democratic process,” Merkley said. “These shameful pardons disrespect the rule of law, our democracy itself, and the brave men and women serving in law enforcement across America.”
The resolution follows the move by Donald Trump, on the first day of his second term, to grant full and unconditional pardons to more than 1,500 people charged with committing crimes in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and to commute the sentences of 14 others, including leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, along with other extremely far-right militias.
Among those pardoned by Trump were 169 people who pled guilty to assaulting police officers on January 6. During the siege of the Capitol that day, more than 80 U.S. Capitol Police Officers were assaulted, along with 60 officers from the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.
A PDF of the resolution is here.
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