The Justice Department is informing US Capitol Police officers who testified in court during the trials of some of the January 6 attackers that the defendants they helped convict are being released from prison. This notification comes after former US Capitol Police Staff Sgt. Aquilino Gonell shared screenshots on social media of phone calls and emails he received from the Justice Department following President Donald Trump's mass clemency for January 6 defendants.
Gonell, who endured multiple assaults during the January 6 insurrection, including a particularly violent confrontation in a tunnel leading to the Capitol, highlighted the routine practice of the Justice Department to notify trial witnesses or victims who spoke at sentencing when the individuals they helped incarcerate are released from prison.
In a post on social media, Gonell expressed his dismay, stating, “Each email and call log is a different violent rioter who assaulted me in the tunnel. If you are defending these people who brutally assaulted the police, maybe you ARE NOT a supporter of the police and the rule of law to begin with. If you did, you would want accountability.”
Another former US Capitol Police officer, Harry Dunn, revealed that Gonell informed him about automated phone calls stating, “The defendant you testified against is being released.” The release of these defendants has raised concerns among the officers who risked their lives during the January 6 attack and testified in court to seek justice for the violence they endured.
