OAN Staff Blake Wolf
4:22 PM – Monday, December 23, 2024
A federal judge who once dismissed January 6th charges against Trump recently ruled to allow a January 6th protest participant to waive bail conditions in order to attend Trump’s inauguration on January 20th.
Judge Tanya Chutkan recently approved Eric Peterson’s request to return to the capitol for Trump’s inauguration, despite Peterson pleading guilty last month to “entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds” during the January 6th, 2021, demonstration.
Peterson, a Kansas City, Missouri, business owner and military veteran, faces up to one year in prison for his accused charges related to January 6th.
The judge previously allowed Peterson to remain free without bail until his sentencing. However, he is unable to travel a certain distance, with D.C. being outside of his bail terms, prompting the special request.
“Mr. Peterson respectfully requests that he be provided limited permission to travel to the District of Columbia for the purpose of attending President Donald Trump’s second inauguration on Monday January 20, 2025,” stated Peterson’s lawyer, Michael Bullotta.
Bullotta highlighted that Peterson was not alleged to have assaulted anyone or caused any damage during “his stint at the Capitol,” and that his client was unaware others were engaging in assault and property damage.
“Mr. Peterson, as the government will agree, was not alleged to have done anything related to assault or vandalism at the January 6, 2021 protests. His offense was entering and remaining in the Capitol for about 8 minutes without proper authorization,” he continued.
Bullotta also noted that the incoming Trump administration has announced that the January 6th participants would be receiving a pardon, meaning that Peterson’s sentencing “will likely be rendered moot,” according to court papers.
Federal prosecutors condemned Peterson for protesting the 2020 election results during the January 6th “Stop the Steal” demonstration. They also noted that Peterson made his way inside the Capitol building and entered into restricted grounds, standing outside the Rotunda until individuals were able to bust inside while chanting “This [is] our house!” Peterson then allegedly went inside, making his way past “a police officer posted at the doors … Peterson knew that the building was off limits and he was not authorized to be there,” according to court papers.
In the last presidential election, Democrats purportedly received around 20 million more votes than they did this year, in 2024, leading Americans to further question if anything suspicious transpired back in 2020. However, left-wing officials, professors, and commentators have argued that it is simply a coincidence.
“If the final results show that 20 million fewer votes were cast for the Democratic candidate for President in 2024 than in 2020, what that indicates is that 20 million voters made a decision not to cast a ballot, either not turn out at all, or not check the top contest,” Paul Gronke, a Reed College political science professor told the press. “That’s the end of the story.”
Additionally, two other Jan. 6th participants with more serious involvements have also made similar requests. However, prosecutors are fighting back against those requests, and the judges have yet to rule.
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