Police expressed outrage at Trump’s Jan. 6 pardon

When inmates are released from federal prisons, the Department of Justice calls victims, informing them that the defendant who attacked them is now free. On Tuesday, the phones of the US Capitol Police and DC police were ringing non-stop.

For former Capitol Police sergeant Aquilino A. Gonell, the automated calls began Monday evening and continued into Tuesday morning after President Trump issued a formal pardon for the All of the nearly 1,600 defendants, including those convicted of violent crimes, on Jan. . 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

Between 7:03 a.m. and 9:37 a.m., Mr. Gonell received nine calls from the Department of Justice about inmate releases.

Mr. Gonell, who was attacked during the attack and retired due to his injuries, was as angry and distraught as he was shortly after the attack.

“This is a travesty of justice, a betrayal, a mockery and a desecration of the men and women who have risked their lives to protect our democracy,” he said of the nearly 1,600 pardons and 14 extraditions.

More than 150 law enforcement officers from both agencies were injured during an attack on the Capitol by pro-Trump gangs four years ago. Some were hit in the head with baseball bats, poles and pipes. One was knocked unconscious after rioters used iron bars to push him down as he walked towards the building.

Now many of those officers have described themselves as troubled and depressed in response to Mr. Trump’s acquittal of their attackers.

In the days and weeks following the riots, several police officers at the Capitol on January 6 were killed, including Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick, who was attacked by the crowd, injured of heart disease and died of natural causes on Jan. 7. Officers Jeffrey Smith of the Washington National Police Department and Howard S. Liebengood of the National Capitol Police died by suicide a few days after the violence.

Craig Sicknick, Brian Sicknick’s older brother, set aside an area of ​​his home for his brother, putting up pictures and displaying pocket-sized military medals known as challenge coins and other memorabilia on a table.

“I think about my brother almost every day,” said Mr. Sicknick. “He spent his life trying to do the right thing. He did this when he was in the army. He did this as a police officer. He did it in his own life.”

The pardon, Mr. Sicknick said, leaves him sad that those who attacked the Capitol will not be held accountable.

“We almost lost our democracy that day,” he said of Jan. 6. “Today, I think democracy is lost.”

On Capitol Hill on Tuesday, there was little condemnation of the pardon from Republican senators, even those who opposed the violence. And those who spoke out often used this opportunity to condemn the pardons issued by former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Mr. Trump.

Senator John Thune, Republican of South Dakota and the majority leader, sidestepped questions on Tuesday about whether Mr Trump was doing the right thing by pardoning the rioters.

“We look to the future, not the past,” said Mr. Thune, who called the pardon “a decision of the president.” He added: “We know that the power of presidential pardons has been greatly expanded by President Biden, and of course we know that at any time President Trump can exercise it as most of the president, and he did.”

However, some of the officers who were victims of violence that day are confident in the fight.

“For anyone who cares about justice and respect for the law and law enforcement, his pardon is an unspeakable outrage,” said Patrick A. Malone, a lawyer for the seven officers who sued. Mr. Trump about the attack.

“I will not forget the officers I represent!” Mr. Malone said.

Harry Dunn, one of the most vocal officers who defended the Capitol on January 6, spent Monday and Tuesday with his former colleagues.

“Everybody is angry and sad and frustrated,” said Mr. Dunn, who left the Capitol Police.

One officer, Mr. Dunn said, had gone to bed after a long shift only to be woken up by an automated email from victims’ services informing him of the release of a defendant on January 6. .

“Every officer who has testified in court is now getting an automated call saying, ‘Hey, this defendant has been released,”’ Mr. Dunn said. “The number of calls people are getting is unbelievable.”

Mr. Dunn himself said he had mixed feelings, including frustration and withdrawal.

“It’s sad to me that everyone is now surprised and waking up to it,” he said, adding that Mr. Trump “said he would do it, and what we did and the other officials got. People will know what’s coming.”

He added: “I get a lot of messages saying, ‘Harry, you’re a hero.’ I don’t want to be a hero. I demand action.”

Carl Hulse contributed to the report.