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An order prohibiting travel on January 6 accused from entering Washington, DC, And the US Capitol could launch constitutional challenges, says one legal expert.
In a filing Friday, Judge Amit P. Mehta ordered the order applied to “Defendants Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins, Roberto Minuta, Edward Vallejo, David Moerchel and Joseph Hacket,” whose sentences were served. Those pardoned are not subject to the warrant.
Rhodes, the founder of the Oath Keepers, was seen earlier in the Capitol Complex office building. He was convicted of sedificatory conspiracies.
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The order says, “You may not knowingly enter the District of Columbia without first obtaining approval from a court.” It adds: “You may not knowingly enter the United States Capitol Building or the surrounding grounds known as Capitol Square.”
A Jan. 6 travel order barring defendants from entering Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Capitol could trigger constitutional challenges, one legal expert says. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The filing says the order is effective as of noon Friday. Later that day, the Justice Department filed a motion seeking to lift the order.
“If a judge ruled that Jim Biden, General Mark Milley, or any other individual, was barred from visiting the U.S. capital—even after receiving a last-minute, preemptive pardon from the former president—I believe the Petition would have passed the sentence – period, end of sentence” , US Attorney Edward Martin said in a statement.
“This is a very unusual order,” Jonathan Turley, a Fox News Media contributor and Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University, told Fox News Digital. “The judge relies on the fact that the sentences were passed, but the accused did not receive full pardons.”
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Ron Coleman, an attorney at Dhillon Law Group, called the Order “novel.”
Stewart Rhodes, founder of Oath Keepers, was convicted of conspiracy. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, file)
“It is unclear what basis a court would have to establish jurisdiction over someone pardoned for a conviction that is presumably the basis for an order or what the legal basis is for making Washington, DC, a type of national capital, like Moscow in the old USSR, to a citizen needs a permit to enter,” Coleman said.
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Turley said that while the new order could “prove a factor” in the President Donald Trump Extending full pardons to those with sentences, “it is unclear whether the order will cause Trump to reconsider his decision to offer only commutations.”
Turley noted that the order could pick up Constitutional challengesincluding First Amendment implications.
Trump pardoned almost all of those charged on January 6 earlier this week after promising to do so at his inauguration parade. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
“I think the Court effectively prohibits these individuals from being able to associate or subpoena government officials without prior court approval,” Turley said. “That could raise questions under the First Amendment.
“I expect that individuals will challenge you.”
Trump pardoned almost all of those charged on January 6 earlier this week after promising to do so at his inauguration parade.
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Trump signed off on Monday at freeing more than 1,500 people accused of crimes From January 6, 2021, the attack on the US Capitol. The order required the Federal Bureau of Prisons to act immediately upon receiving the pardon.
Those pardoned in his initial order included Enrique Tarrio, the former president of the Proud Boys who faced 22 years in prison for conspiracy.
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Fox News’ David Spunt, Diana Stancy and Jamie Joseph contributed to this report.
