US judge dismisses January 6 case against Proud Boys after Trump order | Donald Trump News
Federal Court Dismisses Seditious Conspiracy Charges Against Proud Boys Members
A federal court in Washington, D.C., has dismissed seditious conspiracy charges against four members of the Proud Boys, a far-right group involved in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
On Friday, Judge Timothy J. Kelly, appointed by former President Donald Trump, approved the government’s motion to dismiss the case with prejudice, indicating that it cannot be reopened in the future. However, Judge Kelly emphasized that the defendants—Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola—had already been convicted of serious offenses.
In his seven-page ruling, Kelly noted that his decision stemmed from principles of the separation of government powers rather than the specifics of the case. “As the Court has said many times, the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, was a perilous event. It was an attack on people, including police officers, many of whom were injured,” Kelly wrote.
The attack occurred shortly after Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden. Following his loss, Trump propagated false claims of election fraud. January 6 was the date Congress was slated to certify the Electoral College votes, confirming Biden’s victory.
On that day, then-Vice President Mike Pence held a ceremonial role in the certification. Reports indicate that Trump pressured Pence to reject the election results. During a “Save America” rally at the White House, Trump told supporters he had won “by a landslide” and urged them to fight against perceived injustices, stating, “If Mike Pence does the right thing, we win the election.”
Following the rally, some attendees marched to the Capitol where they broke into the building, clashed with law enforcement, and caused substantial damage while chanting threats against Pence. The violent insurrection resulted in fatalities, including a rioter shot by police and the subsequent death of a law enforcement officer.
Under the Biden administration, the Department of Justice initiated criminal proceedings against nearly 1,600 individuals involved in the insurrection. Trump has consistently characterized these prosecutions as a “national injustice.”
In connection with ongoing legal developments, Trump announced during his 2024 campaign that he would pardon the rioters. On January 20, 2025, he signed an executive order granting unconditional pardons to most defendants associated with the Capitol attack. He also commuted sentences for several individuals, including Nordean, Biggs, Rehl, and Pezzola.
Judge Kelly referenced these events in his ruling, acknowledging that while he granted the government’s motion, it should not be interpreted as an endorsement of those decisions. In May 2023, a jury found Nordean, Biggs, and Rehl guilty of conspiring to commit seditious acts, while Pezzola was convicted on several felony charges, including assaulting a police officer.
Judge Kelly concluded that the court could not compel the executive branch to pursue prosecutions and noted the impact of Trump’s executive order on the dismissal of the case. “The Court will grant the motion because there are no grounds for it to withhold leave for the Government to dismiss the case with prejudice,” he stated.
He ended his decision by emphasizing the necessity of safeguarding American democracy from further threats: “If this Nation’s experiment in self-government is to last another 250 years, the American people—no matter their partisan preferences—will have to act together to preserve, protect, and defend that miracle through our constitutional framework.”
