Judge Drops Jan. 6 Charges Against Proud Boys Leaders

Top members of the far-right group Proud Boys had their convictions dismissed on Friday, ending the federal case against the men accused of leading the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly granted a request by the Department of Justice to wipe out the seditious conspiracy charges against Ethan Nordean, Zachary Rehl, Dominic Pezzola and Joseph Biggs.

President Trump pardoned more than 1,500 of the rioters who stormed the Capitol in an attempt to overturn his loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election. He had only commuted the sentence of the four Proud Boys leaders, leaving them out of jail but still convicted.

Trump's DOJ in April asked a federal court to fully dismiss the charges against the four men. Kelly, a Trump appointee, granted the request but added,