Do you think President Trump should have pardoned the Jan. 6 rioters?
- Yes
- No
- I don't know
The conviction of White Plains resident William Pepe, formerly of the Dutchess County city of Beacon, was overturned by an executive order signed by Trump on Monday, Jan. 20.
Pepe had previously been found guilty of charges related to his conduct during the Jan. 6 breach in October 2024. According to federal prosecutors, Pepe charged over and removed barriers at the Capitol on the day of the riots and entered the building while recording video and sending it to fellow Proud Boys members.
During the events of the day, he was also pepper sprayed by officers. He then posted a selfie-style video in which he said, "Yo, the cops pepper sprayed me and Hooks. Me and Hooks got f—ing maced. Storming that Capitol, baby!"
Pepe spent a total of around 38 minutes inside the building before leaving through a broken window. He was arrested later in the month on Jan. 22, 2021, in White Plains. After his arrest, he was also terminated from his job as a laborer at the Metro-North train yard in the Putnam County village of Brewster.
Despite his conviction on charges, including tampering with records, documents, or objects, obstructing, impeding, or interfering with law enforcement during a civil disorder, Trump called the prosecution of those involved in the riots a "grave national injustice" in the text of the executive order.
"What they’ve done to these people is outrageous," he said in the Oval Office on Monday, according to a report by The Hill.
Over 140 police officers were injured on Jan. 6, 2021, and some died from their injuries.
A spokesman for Hudson Valley Rep. Mike Lawler, a Republican who represents New York's 17th Congressional District, said Lawler does not believe those involved in violent acts should be let off the hook, but added that it is up to Trump:
"Congressman Lawler’s stance hasn’t changed — those who committed acts of violence should be held accountable. However, as President Biden proved by preemptively pardoning his entire family, the President has absolute pardon authority," said Lawler's spokesman Nate Soule.
In addition to Pepe, former Newburgh tattoo shop owner Roberto Minuta, age 39, was also pardoned for his role in the Jan. 6 riot, during which he aggressively berated and taunted US Capitol police officers inside of the Capitol. He had been sentenced in June 2023 to 54 months in prison, but had his sentence commuted by Trump.
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