Capitol Riot Defendants Granted Court Approval to Attend Trump's Inauguration in Washington, DC

Thousands of Donald Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol after he lost the 2020 presidential election. Four years later, some of them are allowed to return to the nation's capital to celebrate Trump's return to the White House. At least 20 defendants charged with or convicted of joining the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol have asked federal judges for permission to attend President-elect Trump's second inauguration Monday in Washington, DC, according to an Associated Press review of court records.

Among those who can attend is Deborah Lynn Lee, a Pennsylvania woman accused of posting social media messages calling for the execution of her political opponents in the days leading up to the riot. Lee was charged in August 2021, was convicted of four misdemeanors after a trial in October and is scheduled to be sentenced January 27. Justice Department prosecutor Carlos Valdivia argued that Lee's return to Washington would endanger Capitol police officers and "create an absurd situation".

Permission Granted for Some Defendants

At least 11 defendants have received the court's permission to attend the inauguration, a day when Trump may issue mass pardons to Capitol rioters. Judges have denied requests made by at least eight others. One request was pending on Saturday. Many other convicted Capitol rioters may be free to attend if they have completed their sentences. Typically, those who remain under the court's supervision after an arrest, a probation sentence or release from prison must get a judge's approval to travel outside their home district.

District Judge John Bates agreed to let a New York couple, Carol Moore and Kevin Moore, attend the inauguration while awaiting a trial in April. Prosecutors argued that police officers could be retraumatised by the Moores' presence, but Bates said it was unlikely that any officers at the inauguration would recognize them. "First, past is not prologue here," the judge wrote. The nature of the inauguration is wholly different from the last event the Moores attended that involved the transition of power.

Denied Requests and Concerns

Among those barred from attending the inauguration are Jared Miller, a Virginia man charged with assaulting police. Miller's attorney, Stephen Brennwald, said Monday's inauguration presents a completely different scenario than the 2021 riot. The lawyer also argued that his client's conduct that day is irrelevant to his travel request. "No longer will the participants and observers be in the District out of anger," Brennwald wrote.

Russell Taylor, a California man who had a knife and a hatchet in his possession when he helped other rioters overrun a police line outside the Capitol, said he was invited to attend the inauguration by former US Rep. Chris Stewart, a six-term Utah Republican who resigned in 2023. District Judge Royce Lamberth, who sentenced Taylor to six months of home detention, said it wouldn't be appropriate to allow somebody who tried to thwart the last presidential inauguration to attend "such a hallowed event".

Prosecutors' Opposition and Judicial Decisions

In most cases, Justice Department prosecutors have argued that Capitol riot defendants shouldn't be able to return to the scene of their crimes while they're under court supervision. "What's past is prologue," a prosecutor wrote in opposing a New York couple's travel request. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui approved Lee's request, noting that she isn't accused of engaging in violence and has complied with her release conditions.

The list of January 6 riot defendants allowed to be in Washington on Monday also includes a New Jersey man who reported himself to the FBI, a New Hampshire woman who must serve a four-month prison sentence and a New Jersey man accused of using a bullhorn to encourage other rioters. Prosecutors didn't object to allowing Colorado bed-and-breakfast operator Rebecca Lavrenz — the self-described "J6 praying grandma" — to attend the inauguration while she is on probation.

Judges also rejected travel requests made by a North Carolina man who participated in violence against Capitol police on January 6, a Mississippi man charged with assaulting officers with a flagpole and a Maine man accused of attacking police with bear spray.