January 6 defendants will no longer be restricted from visiting the U.S. Capitol following a ruling from Federal Judge Amit Mehta.
The judge said it was "reasonable" the Justice Department interpreted Trump's Jan. 6 commutations to cover the defendants' prison sentences and wipe away their terms of supervised release.
Several members of the Oath Keepers, a far-right extremist group, cannot enter Washington, DC, or the grounds of the US Capitol without first receiving court permission, a federal judge said Friday, days after President Donald Trump commuted their prison sentences.
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta placed the restriction on Friday after Oath Keeper leader Stewart Rhodes met with GOP lawmakers in Congress on Wednesday, days after he and eight of his lieutenants had their years-long prison sentences commuted to time served.
A judge had ordered the Oath Keeper members convicted of crimes related to the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, to be barred from entering the U.S. Capitol court permission.
Commuted Jan. 6 defendants could challenge a federal judge's order barring them from entering Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Capitol on constitutional grounds, one expert says.
A federal district judge issued an order barring certain Jan. 6 defendants with commuted sentences from entering Washington, D.C., or the U.S. Capitol building.
The Justice Department told a judge he can't block Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes from visiting the Capitol after Donald Trump's Jan. 6 clemency.
Rhodes was convicted by a federal jury of sedition conspiracy in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. President Trump pardoned him on Monday.
The Department of Justice under the Trump administration has demanded that members of the Oath Keepers militia who have been barred from entering Washington D.C. or the US Capitol be allowed to do so.
Dozens of Jan. 6 defendants who received pardons from President Trump had past criminal convictions for charges including rape, manslaughter, domestic violence and drug trafficking.