Judge rules Trump Jan.6 pardons exclude pipe bomb suspect

A federal judge has ruled that former President Donald Trump's mass pardons for individuals involved in the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack do not apply to Brian J. Cole Jr., the Virginia man charged with planting pipe bombs outside the headquarters of both major political parties the night before the riot. U.S. District Judge Amir Ali denied Cole's motion to dismiss the case on Monday, July 6, 2026, finding the clemency order was expressly limited to people who had already been convicted of offenses related to the events at the Capitol.

Judge Ali's ruling stated that Cole did not qualify for the pardon because he had not been charged, let alone convicted, at the time Trump issued the proclamation on January 20, 2025. The order affected approximately 1,500 people accused or convicted in connection with the Capitol breach. Cole was arrested and first charged in December 2025, nearly a year after the pardons were granted and almost five years after the bombs were discovered.

Cole is accused of placing two viable pipe bombs near the Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee buildings in Washington, D.C., on January 5, 2021. The devices were discovered and...