An Idaho woman who was convicted of storming the United States Capitol on January 6 and encouraging others to do the same is now working to ensure that she is not one of the more than 1,500 rioters pardoned by President Donald Trump.
Pamela Hemphill, who was 69 years old in 2022 when she was sentenced to two months in jail for her role in the attack, is actively refusing the president’s clemency, claiming that Trump’s mass pardons and commutations are part of a larger effort to spread false information about the crimes committed by his followers that day.
“The pardons simply add to their lie-filled narrative. Propaganda. “We were guilty, period,” Hemphill stated in a recent interview with CBS News.
“We all know that they’re gaslighting us,” said the woman. “They are using January 6 to simply reinforce Trump’s narrative that the Justice Department was weaponized. They were not. Oh my God, when the FBI came to my house, they were extremely professional. “They treated me very well.”
In January 2021, Hemphill flew to Washington, D.C. from Idaho to support Trump’s effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, according to court documents.
Prosecutors said she pushed through police lines three times as the crowd outside the Capitol became more violent. She also encouraged her fellow rioters to force their way inside the building, and she was later seen inside the Rotunda.
Furthermore, when police offered to assist Hemphill, prosecutors claimed she “needlessly” exaggerated her injuries to distract officers from more violent protesters.
Hemphill pleaded guilty in January 2022 to one count of demonstrating, picketing, or parading in a Capitol building, which is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail, a $5,000 fine, and up to five years probation.
Hemphill requested only probation, but prosecutors recommended that she serve at least 60 days in jail, three years on probation, and 60 hours of community service.
Since storming the Capitol, Hemphill claims she has realized that Trump’s claims about winning the 2020 election were false and regrets getting caught up in the false narrative, referring to the MAGA movement as a “cult” and the president as a “felon Trump” who should be held accountable for what occurred.
“How could you sleep at night taking a pardon when you know you were guilty?” she complained to CBS. “You understand that everyone there was guilty. I could not live with myself. I have to be right with myself. “And with God.”
According to CBS News, Idaho Sen. James Risch, a Republican, has been assisting Hemphill in her efforts to officially refuse the pardon.
Though his office told the network that it “cannot disclose details” about Hemphill’s case due to “privacy concerns,” records show that the Office of the Pardon Attorney wrote to the senator about the pardon in April, stating, in part, that “Hemphill’s non-acceptance is noted.” According to the correspondence, Hemphill would not receive a formal certificate of pardon.
When asked what she thinks will happen if the president learns about her position, Hemphill said Trump will most likely call her “an ungrateful lady” and instruct government officials to “give her the worst you can give her.”
