Trump pardoned 1,500 Jan. 6 defendants and rioters just hours after he was sworn in.
WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Richard “Bigo” Barnett, one of the most prominent figures convicted for crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot, has been released from prison after being pardoned by President Donald Trump during the first hours of his presidency.
On Jan. 20, 2025, Trump pardoned over 1,500 people who were either charged with or convicted of seditious conspiracy and assaulting police officers on his first day in office.
According to a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Barnett, who is originally from Gravette, Ark., was released from prison at 11 p.m. on Jan. 20.
Barnett was convicted of entering the U.S. Capitol alongside other rioters while carrying an American flag and a stun gun walking stick. The federal judge involved in his case called Barnett a “face of January 6” at his sentencing hearing, referencing the widely-circulated photo showing him with his legs propped up on then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s desk.
Prosecutors highlighted his “brazen disrespect for every form of authority,” and noted that he came to the Capitol “prepared for violence.”
Barnett was found guilty on all eight charges—including four felonies— by a jury in January 2023. The jury trial lasted eight days with 16 witnesses giving their testimony. The jury deliberated for just over two hours before reaching a unanimous verdict.
Barnett began serving this sentence on Aug. 1, 2023, in a prison near Dallas. He was sentenced to 54 months in prison.
According to the U.S. Constitution, a president has the authority “to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the U.S.”
Casting the rioters as “patriots” and “hostages,” Trump has claimed they were unfairly treated by the Justice Department that also charged him with federal crimes in two cases he contends were politically motivated.
Trump said the pardons will end “a grave national injustice that has been perpetrated upon the American people over the last four years and begins a process of national reconciliation.”
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