A federal judge on Friday agreed to toss the convictions of four men who participated in the January 6 protests at the Capitol in 2021, following a Justice Department request to clear some of the last remaining cases related to the event.
Background
The four men, Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola, were convicted in 2023 of numerous felony charges, including seditious conspiracy. However, their convictions were later commuted by President Donald Trump, who issued approximately 1,500 full pardons to individuals convicted in connection with the January 6 protests.
The Justice Department requested to dismiss the case in April, stating that it would end the ‘years-long, Biden-era weaponized prosecutions.’ U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly granted the motion to dismiss the convictions with prejudice, meaning the case is permanently closed.
Reaction
Zachary Rehl, who was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, celebrated the ruling on social media, writing ‘Finally, it’s ALL OVER! January 6th can now be a thing of the past for me!’
Enrique Tarrio, who was on trial alongside the four men, congratulated them on the ruling, stating that ‘the seditious conspiracy hoax and the whole rigged indictment’ had been vacated.
Original reporting: Dallas TX News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
