Less than a month after receiving
pardons for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, some former defendants find themselves in a familiar place: back in court, facing other criminal charges.
There is Edward Kelley, who was pardoned for assaulting police at the U.S. Capitol, but who is now fighting another case. In November, a jury convicted him of conspiring to murder the Federal Bureau of Investigation 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.
The Tennessee man believes that President Trump’s blanket pardon covering “offenses related to events that occurred at or near” the Capitol on Jan. 6 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. 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 a large contingent of the defendants.
tenney.house.gov
