The former leader of the Philadelphia Proud Boys was among 14 people whose prison sentences for their roles in the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021 were commuted by President Donald Trump on Monday.
Zachary Rehl, a Port Richmond native, was one of five members of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, found guilty of seditious conspiracy in May 2023. He later was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.
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On his first day back in Washington, Trump also issued a "full, complete and unconditional pardon" to 1,500 people involved in the attack. Those serving prison sentences are to be released immediately, the White House said.
According to his sentencing memorandum, Rehl led "rally boys" to an entrance on the west side of the Capitol just before the certification of the 2020 presidential election was set to start. Prosecutors said he sprayed a police officer's face with an irritant. Rehl denied doing so during his trial, but at his sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly said Rehl had lied about it.
The 14 people whose sentences were commuted include Joseph Biggs, Ethan Nordean and Dominic Pezzola, who all were on trial with Rehl in May 2023. Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys national chair who was also on trial at the time, received a pardon.
Trump did not address the Jan. 6 attack during his inauguration address, but he did when speaking to an overflow crowd of supporters in the U.S. Capitol, NBC News reported. He referred to the defendants as "hostages."
"I was going to talk about the J6 hostages," Trump said. "But you'll be happy because, you know, it's action, not words, that count. And you're going to see a lot of action on the J6 hostages."
At least 1,583 people from 50 states have been charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol attack, according to data released by the U.S. Attorney's Office released earlier this month. Of them, 608 people were charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement – a felony – and 174 people were charged using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer.
