Following Donald Trump’s recent election victory, some defendants in the January 6 Capitol riot cases are looking to Trump’s earlier promises of clemency.
One defendant has already cited Trump’s win in hopes of stalling a hearing, anticipating a potential pardon from the incoming president.
Trump’s return to office has reignited discussions around his previous pledges to pardon those involved in the 2021 riot, creating a stir in Washington as both supporters and legal teams monitor his next moves regarding high-profile cases from that event.
“Throughout his campaign, President-elect Trump made multiple clemency promises to the January 6 defendants, particularly to those who were nonviolent participants,” lawyers for Christopher Carnell wrote in a court filing Wednesday. “Mr. Carnell, who was an 18-year-old nonviolent entrant into the Capitol on January 6, is expecting to be relieved of the criminal prosecution that he is currently facing when the new administration takes office.”
Carnell was convicted of all seven counts against him, including disorderly conduct in a restricted building.
As of now, his lawyers wrote, Carnell is “awaiting further information from the Office of the President-elect regarding the timing and expected scope of clemency actions relevant to his case.”
District Judge Beryl Howell quickly knocked down the request in an order Wednesday, telling Carnell the hearing would remain scheduled for Friday.
Trump has previously said he would pardon January 6 defendants, saying in July that “if they’re innocent” he “would pardon them.”