The atmosphere was celebratory outside the Central Detention Facility prison in Washington late Monday night.
Just hours after taking the oath of office, U.S. President Donald Trump pardoned about 1,500 people who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, during which Trump supporters tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Many of them were held in the Central Detention Facility in southeast Washington. Despite the frigid cold, their supporters gathered outside the building, looking forward to what they told VOA they hoped would be their speedy release. As of publication, that release had not happened yet.
The police presence outside the prison was substantial throughout the night. So, too, was the media presence. And even though supporters at one point briefly rushed the prison entrance, only to be blocked by police, they still told VOA that the gathering was joyous and patriotic.
While brandishing an American flag, Ben Pollock told VOA that two of his children — Olivia and Jonathan — were jailed for taking part in the attack. He said he himself was present that day, too, but that he didn’t enter the Capitol Building.
Pollock, from Florida, said he was “ecstatic, praising God” that his children would be released soon. “It’s been such a spiritual journey.”
Former fugitives Olivia and Jonathan Pollock are charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers, as well as theft of government property, according to media reports. The latter is accused of grabbing an officer by the waist and pulling the officer down a set of stairs, and punching another officer in the face.
Their father cried as he talked about Jan. 6 — not because he regretted that day, which he didn’t, but because he said he felt so deeply that those who were jailed for participating in the attack had been unfairly prosecuted.
“It’s broken my heart for four years. I’ve cried and cried and cried over these families,” Pollock said. “Today is their day of freedom.”
Pollock and others who spoke with VOA said they felt like Trump’s executive order meant that they were finally getting vindication for Jan. 6.
For them, Trump’s pardon confirmed their belief that the 2020 election was rigged, they told VOA. It also represented the fulfillment of a promise that Trump had made during his campaign to absolve those who took part in the attack, they said.
Numerous reports and investigations have shown that the 2020 election was not stolen. Election officials have confirmed the election was secure, and Trump and his allies have failed to produce any evidence to substantiate the allegations of fraud.
Despite the evidence that the election was not stolen, several people outside the prison told VOA that Trump’s pardon reinforced their belief that it actually had been.
“The election was stolen. We all see it. The whole world saw it,” Stephanie Liu, from New York told VOA.
Liu, who was present at the Capitol on Jan. 6, said she has come to the prison every month for the past two-and-a-half years to visit the imprisoned Jan. 6 rioters. “Political prisoners should not exist in this country,” said Liu, who is originally from China.
Helena Gibson, from the U.S. capital, made a similar point: “This has been four long years of these Jan. 6 political hostages.”
That language echoes Trump, who calls those who stormed the Capitol “hostages” and “unbelievable patriots.”
One day after the attack, Trump said that “those who broke the law” during the riot would “pay.” But defending them ended up becoming a significant component of his 2024 presidential campaign.
Tom Jeffries, from Virginia, said he was “somewhat disappointed” that Trump didn’t mention the Jan. 6 defendants during his inaugural address.
“But knowing him, I knew that he hadn’t forgotten about it. He was waiting for the right time to do it,” Jeffries told VOA. “That was my hope, and God granted my wish.”
Trump’s decision to pardon those who took part in the attack was met with swift condemnation from Democrat lawmakers like Senator Chris Murphy.
By pardoning the rioters, “Trump has transformed American democracy,” Murphy said in a post on X. “Political violence is now mainstream.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer also said those who invaded the Capitol should not have been pardoned.
“Trump is ushering in a Golden Age for people that break the law and attempt to overthrow the government,” Schumer said in a statement.
