Overview
- Sunseri received a full presidential pardon after being convicted in September of a misdemeanor for briefly leaving the Garnet Canyon Trail to use the Old Climber’s Trail during his 2024 Grand Teton speed attempt.
- His 2:50:50 ascent–descent on September 2, 2024, was disallowed by FastestKnownTime.com after GPS data showed the shortcut on a route the National Park Service considered closed.
- Before the pardon, federal prosecutors had agreed to seek dismissal if he completed 60 hours of community service and a wilderness stewardship course, a proposal the judge questioned ahead of a scheduled hearing.
- FOIA records showed the Park Service later urged against prosecution citing the president’s executive order on overcriminalization, but the Justice Department continued the case to a bench verdict.
- The case drew support from the Pacific Legal Foundation and attention from Congress over mens rea reforms, and filmmakers say a feature documentary about the saga is in post-production for a planned 2026 release.