Members of the Proud Boys who were convicted by a jury on several counts related to the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack – each of whom were later pardoned or had their sentences commuted by President Donald Trump – are now suing the Justice Department for what they say was a “political prosecution.”
The individuals, including several former leaders of the group, say the prosecution in the case amounted to an “egregious and systemic abuse of the legal system and the United States Constitution to punish and oppress political allies of President Trump, by any and all means necessary, legal, or illegal.”
Four of the five men – Enrique Tarrio, the former leader of the group; Joseph Biggs; Ethan Nordean; Trump Zachary Rehl; and Dominic Pezzola – were convicted of seditious conspiracy and each received lengthy sentences prior to Trump’s absolution. The group wants the government to pay $100 million in restitution for the criminal prosecution and has asked for a jury trial in the matter.
In the wake of Trump’s election for a second term, the administration granted full clemency to hundreds of people convicted of felony crimes like destroying property and assaulting police on January 6. Trump’s reelection also brought with it a complete about-face on investigations into those who attacked the Capitol that day, effectively ending the largest ever investigation conducted by the FBI.
Trump’s Justice Department also recently announced it had reached a settlement in the lawsuit brought by the family of Ashli Babbitt, who was shot and killed by an officer on January 6 after attempting to breach the Speaker’s Lobby near the House chamber.
CNN has reached out to the Justice Department for comment.
Republicans and Trump allies have long argued that the hundreds of cases brought against people who participated in the January 6 attack often amounted to political persecution from Joe Biden’s Justice Department because they targeted Trump supporters.
The lawsuit filed Friday could either force the administration to defend its prosecution of the Proud Boys or settle with the men.
One of the men suing the Justice Department, Dominic Pezzola, was the first rioter to break open a window at the Capitol, allowing scores of protestors to enter the building, prosecutors said during the trial. Prosecutors argued that the other four men were leaders of the group and helped coordinate and helm elements of the attack.
“Now that the Plaintiffs are vindicated, free, and able to once again exercise their rights as American citizens, they bring this action against their tormentors for violations of their Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment Rights,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit argues that prosecutors went after the five men despite knowing they never organized or coordinated the events of January 6.
Prosecutors, the lawsuit alleges, invented “a whole new legal theory,” stacked the jury and breached attorney-client communications.
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