Overview
- Cole’s attorneys filed a motion on March 16 arguing Trump’s January 2025 pardon for offenses related to events at or near the Capitol on January 6 extends to the pipe-bomb case.
- The White House told Scripps News the pardon does not apply because prosecutors say the devices were planted on January 5, a day before the date specified in the order.
- Prosecutors say Cole admitted to planting the devices near the DNC and RNC, citing surveillance footage, credit card records, cellphone data and a license plate reader; the bombs were discovered on January 6.
- The defense points to past government descriptions linking the devices to the Capitol attack, including testimony from a former Capitol Police chief describing a coordinated plan.
- Legal scholar Mark Osler notes the pardon’s broad and hurried drafting but says timing and location could undercut the defense, as the case proceeds without a court ruling and with Cole detained after judges denied pretrial release.