WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal officials confirm they have pulled news releases concerning criminal prosecutions tied to the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot from the Department of Justice website, labeling the prosecution information as “partisan propaganda.”
The removal of documents detailing criminal charges, guilty verdicts and prison sentences represents another move by the Trump administration to fundamentally alter the narrative surrounding the Capitol attack, when hundreds of Republican President Donald Trump’s supporters breached the building to stop Congress from certifying his 2020 electoral defeat to Democrat Joe Biden.
During his first day returning to office in January 2025, Trump issued pardons, reduced prison terms or promised to drop charges for all of the more than 1,500 individuals facing criminal charges from the Capitol incident, including defendants found guilty of assaulting law enforcement with improvised weapons like flagpoles, a hockey stick and crutch.
This Monday, the Justice Department revealed plans for a $1.776 billion compensation fund designed to pay Trump supporters who believe they faced unfair investigation and prosecution. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has not dismissed the possibility that violent rioters with convictions could receive compensation, sparking anger from both parties in Congress.
Following a reporter’s Friday observation on social media platform X that the Justice Department was “quietly” taking down website news releases connected to the January 6th incident, including information about a Texas man who admitted guilt to assault charges and separately faced state charges for soliciting a minor, the department replied through its “rapid response” account that nothing was being done “quietly.”
“We are proud to reverse the DOJ’s weaponization under the Biden administration. We will do everything in our power to make whole those who were persecuted for political purposes,” the post said. “This includes stripping DOJ’s website of partisan propaganda.”
The deleted releases included those covering seditious conspiracy prosecutions of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers members, both far-right extremist organizations. Last month, the Justice Department filed an unopposed request with a federal appeals court to overturn those seditious conspiracy guilty verdicts, which the court approved Thursday. On Friday, the department moved to throw out the cases against these group members.
