A federal judge permits a Jan. 6 defendant to attend Trump’s inauguration in D.C.

WASHINGTON: So, there’s this guy, Eric Lee Peterson, from Kansas City. He got into some trouble for being part of the Jan. 6 Capitol incident. But guess what? A judge just said he can go to Trump’s inauguration on January 20.
The judge, Tanya Chutkan, is the same one who dealt with Trump’s election case. Peterson’s lawyer argued that he should be allowed to attend since he’s got no prior criminal record and only spent about eight minutes inside the Capitol.
His lawyer also mentioned that Trump plans to pardon people like Peterson on his first day in office. So, they think his upcoming sentencing might not even happen. Trump has been calling these Jan. 6 folks “patriots” and has promised to help them out.
In a recent interview, Trump said he’d act fast to pardon these defendants, but he might make exceptions for those he thinks are too extreme. He even threw some shade at former Rep. Liz Cheney and current Rep. Bennie Thompson, who were involved in the Jan. 6 investigation.
Peterson pleaded guilty to unlawfully entering a restricted area and could face up to a year in prison. He also agreed to pay some restitution for the damage caused during the riot.
After the Capitol attack, a ton of people—over 1,500—faced federal charges. Peterson is one of many who admitted guilt, and he was caught on video during the chaos. He even took some selfies inside the Capitol!
He was arrested back in August and had a few charges against him, but now he’s looking forward to attending the inauguration. It’s a wild turn of events for sure!