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Trump's Jan. 6 pardons don't apply to DC pipe bomb suspect, judge rules
AP News • • general
Key Points:
- A federal judge ruled that President Donald Trump's mass pardons for Jan. 6 Capitol rioters do not apply to Brian J. Cole Jr., who is charged with planting pipe bombs near the Democratic and Republican party headquarters before the riot.
- Judge Amir Ali stated that Trump's pardons explicitly cover only those convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6 attack, and Cole was neither charged nor convicted when the pardons were issued.
- Cole was arrested nearly a year after the pardons for allegedly placing two undetonated pipe bombs on the night before the Capitol riot, with prosecutors citing his confession and phone records as evidence.
- Cole's defense argued his actions were connected to the Jan. 6 events and thus should qualify for a pardon, but prosecutors maintained the pardons do not apply to his case, a position the judge upheld.
- Cole is scheduled for a status hearing, with no trial date set, as the legal process continues amid ongoing investigations into the Jan. 6 attack and related activities.
