⚡ Breaking in D.C. — Obama-appointed judge drops bombshell ruling on Jan. 6 case! See below for details!👇
A fourth federal judge has now turned down a request from a defendant involved in the January 6 incident who sought a refund of restitution that was paid prior to receiving a pardon from President Donald Trump.
The most recent denial pertains to a rioter from Texas who, as stated by the Justice Department, openly boasted about his involvement in the Capitol breach of 2021 on Facebook, sharing photos and videos of himself trespassing during the assault, as reported by Law & Crime.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, appointed by Obama, is the latest to dismiss a request for the reimbursement of restitution and fines, following a filing made in February by Stacy Hager, aged 61.
Hager, who was found guilty in 2023 on four misdemeanor charges related to the Capitol breach, requested a refund of the $570 he was mandated to pay, according to the outlet.
Federal prosecutors supported Hager’s request, as they have done for other January 6 defendants, contending that there was “no longer any basis justifying the government’s retaining funds.” However, Chutkan was not persuaded, citing three other recent rejections, all of which occurred in her district in Washington, D.C.
“At least three other judges in this district have denied similar motions where defendants sought reimbursement for fines and fees associated with their now pardoned criminal convictions,” Chutkan noted in her three-page order, which she issued last Thursday.
“The government concurs, acknowledging that pardons generally do not ‘make amends for the past’ nor do they provide any ‘relief for what has been suffered by the offender,’” the judge remarked. “Yet, it adopts the peculiar stance that in this ‘unusual situation,’ reimbursement is warranted.” Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, along with Judges Royce Lamberth and Randolph Moss, are among the D.C. judges who have recently rejected similar requests for restitution refunds from January 6 defendants, as reported by Law & Crime.
On June 30, Boasberg denied a request from a couple in Maryland who sought the return of approximately $1,000 in restitution. Moss rejected a claim from a pardoned former U.S. Marine from New Jersey, while Lamberth dismissed the case of Utah defendant John Sullivan.
In her ruling last week, Judge Chutkan reiterated the rationale of her fellow judges, citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1877 decision in Knote v. United States. This ruling characterized a pardon as “an act of grace” that does not restore “rights or property once vested in others as a result of the conviction and judgment.”
“A pardon cannot permit reimbursement once money has ‘been paid to a party to whom the law has assigned them,’ because the party’s ‘rights . . . have become vested, and are as complete as if they were acquired in any other legal way,’” Chutkan stated in her ruling.
Trump’s broad pardon of January 6 rioters encompassed Hager, one of over 1,500 defendants who have received clemency since the president commenced his second term in January.
The Justice Department contended that Hager’s situation was distinct, along with others whose convictions were similarly “invalidated,” because he was not merely pardoned. Rather, the government took the extraordinary measure of vacating his case entirely while it remained under appeal, according to the outlet.
“Here, Hager’s conviction was ‘invalidated’ when the D.C. Circuit vacated it, and therefore ‘there is no longer any basis justifying the government’s retaining funds exacted only as a result of that conviction,’” wrote Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Dreher.
Hager submitted his motion in late February, requesting reimbursement of fines, fees, and restitution.
In the case of Knote, the Supreme Court clarified that ‘a pardoned individual is not ‘entitle[d]’ to payments that have already been deposited into the United States Treasury, unless there is congressional authorization to withdraw the funds,’” concluded Chutkan. “Consequently, this court does not possess the authority to instruct the Architect of the Capitol to reimburse Hager’s $570.
Democrats swiftly criticized Trump’s choice to grant pardons to the majority of Jan. 6 defendants, while Republicans pointed out that the Biden Justice Department pursued and frequently secured disproportionately severe convictions for individuals charged with minor misdemeanors.
Other Jan. 6 defendants faced years of incarceration without being granted bail or having the opportunity to go to trial.
A Stranger Entered His Home With a Key and Revealed His Wife’s Hidden Past
Daniel Mercer saw the woman unlock his front door before he ever learned her name.
The Folded Letter That Exposed the Truth Her Father Hid for Fifteen Years
The Folded Letter Hidden Beneath the Ballroom Lights That Changed Everything She Believed About Her Family
A Father Finds A Message To His Baby And Questions Everything He Knows
The baby’s crying had already turned heads across the grocery store parking lot before Daniel Mercer reached the blue sedan and saw his daughter’s tiny hands pressed against the inside of the window.
The Stolen Signature That Could Send a Respected Attorney to Prison
The bailiff had barely finished saying "all rise" when Daniel Mercer heard the sentence that could destroy the life he had spent fifteen years building.
The Missing Father’s Warning Hidden Inside a Broken Rabbit Opened a Door No One Was Meant to Find
Mara Bell found the first sign that her father had not left her behind inside a rabbit with a missing eye.
The Stained Shirt That Exposed A Family Secret
The white shirt on the kitchen island was still warm when Clara Bennett saw the stain spreading across the fabric.
The Wedding Certificate That Named Another Woman Before The Ceremony
The wedding certificate was still warm from the printer when Emily Carter saw another woman's name written where her own should have been.
The Wife He Lost Returns Alive and Exposes the Mystery Behind Her Disappearance
The first time Marcus Vale saw his dead wife alive again, he was holding another woman's hand in a hotel lobby full of strangers.
The Hidden Medical Document Revealing The Truth His Family Kept From Him
The Illness That Revealed The Family Truth Everyone Tried To Hide
The Torn Birth Record That Challenged Everything He Knew About His Family
The first thing Daniel Whitmore noticed was the sound of his daughter crying in a house where nobody was supposed to be afraid.
The Restaurant Owner Forced To Choose Who Leaves As A Hidden Message Reveals The Threat Was Planned
The first thing Daniel Mercer noticed was that nobody in his restaurant was eating anymore.
My Husband Demanded My Password After My Cancer Treatment And I Discovered His Obsession With My Life Insurance
The first time Adam put his hand on my head, I thought he was trying to steady me.
Widow Returned From Her Husband’s Funeral To Find Her Family Dividing His Belongings Before Her Shocking Television Revelation
The first thing I saw when I stepped out of the airport terminal was not my son’s car, not my daughter’s familiar wave, and not a single person I loved waiting for me after I had buried my husband alone in Switzerland.
I Found My Granddaughter Hurt and a Fake Signature Revealed a Family Scheme
I walked into my daughter’s living room and knew something was wrong before I understood what I was seeing.