US judge bans some January 6 rioters from capital without court permission

A United States federal judge has barred several high-profile figures who took part in the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, from entering Washington, DC, without court permission, as a condition of their release from prison.

On Friday, Judge Amit Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia issued the ruling, which applies to Stewart Rhodes, the former leader of the far-right Oath Keepers group, and seven others.

“You must not knowingly enter the District of Columbia without first obtaining the permission from the Court,” Mehta’s order read.

The decision comes after President Donald Trump made the controversial decision to pardon nearly all of the  1,583 people who faced federal charges for their participation in the 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

On January 6 of that year, Trump supporters attacked law enforcement and stormed the building in an effort to overturn the Republican’s loss in the 2020 election. Lawmakers were forced to stop their certification of the Electoral College votes and flee.

Rhodes, who had been given an 18-year sentence, was one of 14 defendants who saw Trump commute their sentences, rather than receiving a full pardon. Commutations do not exonerate but rather lower the punishments a defendant may face.

Trump announced the commutations and pardons on Monday, in the first hours of his second term. A day later, Rhodes was released from prison.