What were the charges and sentences for military members pardoned by donald trump?
Executive summary
Donald Trump has issued large-scale clemency actions that include blanket pardons for roughly 1,500 people charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack, individual pardons and commutations for military members accused or convicted of war crimes, and high‑profile pardons of public figures — moves that erased or shortened sentences ranging from misdemeanors to decades‑long federal terms [1] [2] [3]. Official Justice Department pages list the Jan. 6 proclamation and the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s rollouts; media reporting and advocacy groups document specific military cases such as Clint Lorance, Matthew Golsteyn and Edward Gallagher [4] [2] [3].
1. The sweep that reshaped Jan. 6 sentences: scope and legal effect
On his first day of the second term Trump issued a blanket clemency proclamation covering “certain offenses” tied to the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, a move that the Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney implemented and later produced certificates for — an action that affected nearly 1,500 people according to contemporaneous reporting [4] [1] [2]. The practical result was the full pardon of most defendants previously convicted or awaiting trial for a wide range of federal charges tied to the riot, while a smaller group had commutations rather than full pardons for organized‑militia sentences [2] [1].
2. What kinds of charges were erased in the Jan. 6 pardon
The proclamation and subsequent pardons covered an array of federal offenses connected to the Capitol breach, from misdemeanor counts like unlawful entry and property destruction to felony charges including obstruction and weapons‑related offenses alleged in individual prosecutions; news outlets summarize that the group pardoned numbered in the roughly 1,500 range [4] [1]. Reporting and legal summaries show that the blanket approach sometimes led prosecutors to dismiss related indictments or decline follow‑on charges, and in at least some cases federal prosecutors argued about the scope of the pardons when separate, non‑Capitol offenses were implicated [2] [5].
3. Military members pardoned: specific high‑profile cases and prior sentences
Trump earlier used clemency to intervene in military justice matters: he granted full pardons to Army officers Clint Lorance and Matthew Golsteyn and ordered the restoration of Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher’s rank after military convictions or charges related to alleged wartime killings and misconduct [3]. Those cases involved very serious allegations: Lorance had been convicted of murder for ordering the killing of Afghan civilians; Golsteyn faced a murder charge tied to an Afghan killing; Gallagher had been convicted in a military proceeding and was demoted for conduct in Iraq — the presidential actions erased or reversed the legal consequences they faced in military courts [3] [6].
4. How advocacy groups and legal commentators framed the military pardons
Civil liberties and human‑rights advocates framed the military pardons as undermining military justice and sending a message that battlefield atrocities could go unpunished; the ACLU and other critics said the moves disrespected the laws of war and service members who follow them [3] [6]. Those organizations document allegations against the pardoned service members — including accounts from fellow troops and prosecutors — to argue the pardons subvert accountability [6].
5. Broader clemency pattern: public figures, foreign actors and political allies
Beyond Jan. 6 and military cases, Trump’s second‑term clemency list included individual pardons for public figures and controversial foreign actors; reporting cites pardons such as Ross Ulbricht, Rod Blagojevich, and the November 2025 pardon of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was serving a 45‑year sentence for large‑scale drug‑trafficking and weapons offenses [1] [7] [8]. Journalistic and nonprofit trackers say the clemency program was fast and expansive, with critics noting pardons for political allies and others whose convictions carried substantial sentences [1] [9].
6. Consequences, loopholes and ongoing disputes over scope
News outlets and legal summaries report downstream consequences and legal fights: some pardoned Jan. 6 defendants were later arrested on unrelated state or federal charges, prosecutors contested whether clemency covered follow‑on offenses, and courts examined narrow vs. broad readings of proclamations — examples include cases where separate gun charges or other allegations produced litigation over whether the blanket pardon applied [2] [5] [10]. The Justice Department’s published proclamation and pardons are authoritative about federal clemency, but media coverage highlights continuing legal and political fallout [4] [10].
Limitations and provenance of this summary: official clemency rolls and the Justice Department proclamation are primary sources for who was covered [4] [11]. Reporting from Newsweek, Reuters, The Washington Post, CNN and advocacy groups supply case details and criticism but differ on emphasis and interpretation [1] [3] [5] [10] [6]. Available sources do not mention every individual military member pardoned beyond the high‑profile names cited here; for full case‑by‑case charges and original sentences consult the Office of the Pardon Attorney lists and contemporaneous court records [4] [11].