President Donald Trump attacks the attack defendant around January 1st
On his first day back in his office, President Donald Trump accused approximately 1,500 people of the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Reuters
Pamelahenhill, a former supporter of President Donald Trump, who served two months in prison for storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021, has formally refused to pardon the president.
Hemphill told USA Today that through Senator James Riche’s office in Idaho, he submitted a document denying pardon with the U.S. Department of Justice’s office of pardon law.
“I don’t want to be part of their story,” she told USA Today why she didn’t accept the pardon. “And of course, it’s a face-to-face look at the Capitol police officers and our rule of law.”
On January 6, 2021, Henhill was one of the thousands of Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., to protest the results of the 2020 presidential election.
She was sentenced to counting misdemeanors, demonstrations or Pickett’s misdemeanors in a Capitol building, and was sentenced to two months in prison, 36 months of probation and $500 in restitution.
On January 20th, Trump forgives more than 1,500 people charged in the Capitol attack.
In an April 2 letter to Senator Riche, which Henhill shared with USA Today, the pardon lawyers’ office said she had noted that she was “non-accepted” the pardon.
“Our office will refrain from Ms Hemphill from issuing a certificate of forgiveness and requesting a pardon on her criminal record,” the letter states.
A spokesman for Senator Riche said the Senator’s office regularly supported members of federal agencies’ issues and refused to disclose additional details regarding the Henhill case.
The amnesty lawyers and the White House office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“It wasn’t okay that day.”
The 72-year-old said she officially refused pardon because she wanted to be honest.
“How could I live my life knowing I am guilty and then I received that pardon?” she said. “It’s like a message that the day was okay – it wasn’t OK that day. It was the worst day of my life.”
She said choosing to oppose Trump’s January 6 pardon is sometimes difficult, citing the backlash he received from Trump supporters. But “it was worth listening to me and knowing that there might be another Pam who might run away from the Magazine Call,” she said.
“The advantage of being honest with yourself outweighs the smear campaigns and backlash you may get because you sleep at night,” she said. “It’s inner peace.”
Henhill said he began rethinking his support for Trump about six months after his release from prison in 2022.
“It’s a progressive process and it’s not that I have any experience with white light,” she said.
Since then, Henhill has opposed his story surrounding Trump and the Capitol attacks. She also voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.
Can I refuse a presidential pardon? How Capitol Rioter turned it down
According to the Constitution, pardons may be rejected by the person who bids.
After Trump announced his pardon to the defendant on January 6, Henhill said he initially wrote a letter to the pardon lawyers’ office, which he begged not to be included in the law.
Senator Riche’s office helped her submit the correct documents, and about a month later they received a formal letter recognizing her “non-admissible” pardon.
Jason Riddle, a New Hampshire man who served 90 days in prison for participation in the attack, said he also refused to pardon. It is unclear whether other individuals charged in the riots refused Trump’s pardon.
Melina Kahn is a national trending reporter for USA Today. She can be contacted at melina.khan@usatoday.com.
