(Washington) US President Donald Trump, for the second time, pardoned one of the participants in the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, one of the last to remain in prison for illegal possession of firearms.
A member of the far-right Oaths Keepers militia, Dan Wilson broke into the Capitol wearing a gas mask. He had already been pardoned by President Trump on the day of his inauguration on January 21, alongside 1,500 other rioters, but remained in prison for a case of illegal possession of weapons at his home in Kentucky.
Sentenced to five years in prison, he was expected to be released in 2028.
Dated Friday, the presidential pardon decree, consulted by AFP, specifies that the pardon is “total and unconditional”.
“Dan Wilson is a good man. After more than seven months of unjustified imprisonment, he is relieved to be reunited with his loved ones,” said his lawyers, George Pallas and Carol Stewart, in a press release to American media including the Politico website.
“This act of clemency not only restores his freedom, but also shines a light on the excesses that have divided this nation,” they added.
In February, the Trump administration argued that the pardon did not cover the gun conviction because it was unrelated to the Jan. 6 attack.
But a few weeks later, the Justice Department changed its mind, ruling that the pardon should apply to weapons offenses because they had been discovered during an FBI search in connection with the riot.
Donald Trump has regularly downplayed the seriousness of the attack on January 6, 2021, describing this date as a “day of love” and “overflow of affection” towards him.
That day, hundreds of his supporters stormed the Capitol, to try to prevent the certification of the victory of his opponent Joe Biden. The attack shocked the United States and the world and caused the deaths of five people.
