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Zachary Rehl: Former Proud Boys leader pardoned by Trump

Zachary Rehl: Former Proud Boys leader pardoned by Trump

A former leader of the far-right extremist group Proud Boys was among President Donald Trump grants clemency to 1,500 people when he returned to the White House for his first day in office on Monday.

What we know:

The president pardoned, commuted prison sentences or promised to dismiss the cases of more than 1,500 people charged with crimes in the attack on the nation’s Capitol on January 6, 2021.

“These are the hostages,” he said as he signed paperwork in the Oval Office after being sworn in as the 47th president of the United States.

Trump also commuted prison sentences for 14 people, including defendants caught on camera committing violent attacks on law enforcement as lawmakers met to certify President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.

“This proclamation ends a grave national injustice that has been perpetrated against the American people over the past four years and begins a process of national reconciliation.”

Zachary Rehl was named one of the rioters to be released from prison.

The backstory:

In August 2023, Zachary Rehl was sentenced to 15 years in prison after he was seen on video spraying a chemical irritant at law enforcement officers outside the Capitol, an act that federal prosecutors said he repeatedly lied about.

Rehl was convicted of seditious conspiracy after prosecutors said he helped lead dozens of Proud Boys members and associates in the march to the Capitol and joined the mob that breached police lines and forced lawmakers to flee.

The former leader of Philadelphia’s Proud Boys then led at least three other men to the Capitol and a senator’s office, where he smoked and posed for photos while flashing the Proud Boys’ hand gesture, according to the Associated Press.

Later that day, he expressed pride in his role in the attack.

“It seems that our attack on the capital set off a chain reaction of events throughout the country,” Rehl wrote in a message to his mother.

What’s next?

Trump said he hopes many will be released soon. And while some inmates may be released the same day the clemency is granted, other larger-scale clemency actions by a president may take longer to implement.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Rehl’s release date from FCI Petersburg Medium in Virginia was still listed as unknown.

The source: The information in this article comes from previous reporting, the Associated Press and statements from the White House.

PhiladelphiaDonald J. TrumpCapitol Riot