06/06/2025

Five Proud Boys Insurrectionists Sue Department of Justice over Jan. 6 Prosecutions

The civil rights lawsuit seeks $100 million for men convicted in the Capitol attack

Five leaders of the Proud Boys, four of whom were found guilty of engaging in a seditious conspiracy to keep President Donald Trump in power on Jan. 6, 2021, want the government to pay them $100 million in restitution over claims their constitutional rights were violated, according to a federal lawsuit filed Friday in Florida.

The lawsuit follows Trump’s decision to pardon virtually all Jan. 6. defendants in one of his opening acts as president, an extraordinary attempt to recast the official public narrative about an attack that halted a cornerstone of America democracy: the peaceful transfer of power.

Now, the suit could force the Trump administration to defend the prosecutions, which many among the president's base viewed as overzealous and politically motivated. Or, pay damages at taxpayers' expense to the Proud Boys, a far-right group with a history of violence, a decision historians warn could amount to an endorsement of using violence for political gain.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.