A convicted January 6 Capitol rioter who served time in prison has turned down President Donald Trump's offer of a pardon.Idaho grandmother Pamela Hemphill pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 60 days in jail over her role in the violent insurrection.Self-proclaImed "MAGA granny" Hemphill, 71, refused the president's pardon – meaning she will remain on probation – and admits her actions that day were "wrong".
Pamela Hemphill, 71, has refused Donald Trump's offer of a pardon. (CNN)"I don't want to be a part of them trying to rewrite history. It was an insurrection that day," she told The Washington Post.She will stay on federal probation for the next nine months after serving two months in prison for her role in storming the Capitol on January 6.Hemphill told the BBC that accepting Trump's pardon would "insult the Capitol police officers, rule of law and, of course, our nation".
Violent insurrectionists loyal to Trump seen outside the US Capitol in Washington on January 6, 2021. (AP)"I pleaded guilty because I was guilty, and accepting a pardon also would serve to contribute to their gaslighting and false narrative," she said.Hemphill, a lifelong Republican, now firmly believes she and the other January 6 rioters were on the wrong side of history.In Pictures: Everything Trump did on his first full day in the White HouseView Gallery"We were wrong that day. We broke the law," Hemphill added."There should be no pardons."
President Donald Trump signed an executive order pardoning 1500 people charged over January 6. (AP)Hours after his inauguration, Trump granted a sweeping pardon to the 1500-plus people charged with crimes relating to January 6.He pardoned, commuted the prison sentences or vowed to dismiss the charges in every case, including people convicted of assaulting police officers.Trump said the pardons will end "a grave national injustice that has been perpetrated upon the American people over the last four years" and begin "a process of national reconciliation".
