ISTANBUL

US President Donald Trump has issued a new set of pardons, including a rare second pardon for a Jan. 6 defendant, as part of a wide scope of his efforts to absolve individuals tied to attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

The White House confirmed Saturday that Trump granted a second pardon to Daniel Edwin Wilson, 50, of Louisville -- whom he had already pardoned for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 breach of the US Capitol.

Wilson was serving a separate sentence on a federal gun charge stemming from a 2022 search of his home. A White House official said the second pardon was warranted because “the search of Mr. Wilson’s home was due to the events of January 6.”

Wilson had previously pleaded guilty to entering the Capitol “wearing a gas mask” at 2.37 pm (0737GMT) and spending 12 minutes inside, according to Justice Department records.

Officials also documented messages he sent that day, including: “We need all hands on deck.” In earlier communications, prosecutors said he wrote, “we have to get this government under control” and “It is time for good men to do bad things.”

'Sooner we put Jan. 6 behind us, the better'

In a statement to The Washington Post, Wilson expressed gratitude: “God bless all of the patriotic advocates who stood by me and God bless Donald Trump.”

Wilson’s attorney, Norm Pattis, welcomed the move, calling the earlier court ruling that sent Wilson back to prison “a spiteful and vindictive ruling” and adding: “The sooner we put Jan. 6 behind us, the better.”

But the decision drew sharp criticism from former US pardon attorney Liz Oyer, who argued the new clemency sends a dangerous message. “These pardons are a signal to Trump’s supporters that MAGA is above the law,” she said.

Trump also pardoned Suzanne Kaye, sentenced to 18 months for threatening FBI agents investigating her Jan. 6 whereabouts, and Joseph Schwartz, a former nursing home executive who pleaded guilty in a $38 million tax-fraud case.

The legal effort behind Wilson’s pardon was funded by Condemned USA, led by Jan. 6 convict Treniss Evans, who said he has assisted “hundreds” of defendants. Supporting Wilson, he said, “was absolutely necessary to cure this injustice.”