The Department of Justice has removed news releases about Jan. 6, 2021 criminal cases from its website, describing the records as "partisan propaganda." The purge covers documents about criminal charges, convictions, and sentencings tied to the Capitol riot, when hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the building in an attempt to stop the congressional certification of the 2020 election results.
According to CBS News, a journalist first noticed on Friday that the department was quietly removing the releases. After the observation was posted on the social media platform X, the Justice Department responded through its rapid response account. "We are proud to reverse the DOJ's weaponization under the Biden administration. We will do everything in our power to make whole those who were persecuted for political purposes," the post read. "This includes stripping DOJ's website of partisan propaganda."
The removed releases included records related to seditious conspiracy cases against members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, two far-right extremist groups. Last month, the Justice Department filed an unopposed motion asking a federal appeals court to vacate those seditious conspiracy convictions. That request was granted Thursday. On Friday, the department moved to dismiss the cases against those group members entirely.
On Monday, the department announced the creation of a $1.776 billion fund intended to compensate Trump allies who believe they were unjustly investigated or prosecuted. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has not ruled out that rioters convicted of violent offenses could be eligible for payouts from the fund. That position has drawn anger from members of both parties in Congress.
On his first day back in office in January 2025, Trump pardoned, commuted sentences, or vowed to dismiss the cases of all 1,500-plus people charged with crimes during the Capitol assault. That group included individuals convicted of attacking law enforcement officers with objects including flagpoles, a hockey stick, and a crutch.
One of the releases removed from the site involved a Texas man who pleaded guilty to assault and also faced separate state charges of soliciting a minor.
