Latest news with #JaredWise
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump's DOJ Adds Pardoned Jan. 6 Rioter to Its Retribution Team
A former FBI agent accused of inciting Donald Trump supporters to kill police officers during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol has been given a job in the Department of Justice. Jared Wise, who was charged but later pardoned by Trump along with more than 1,500 others connected to the 2021 Capitol riot, will serve as a counselor to Ed Martin, director of the 'Weaponization Working Group,' The New York Times reported. The newly formed group, established by Attorney General Pam Bondi in February, was tasked with reviewing 'politicized' actions against Trump but has been accused of being another example of the president using federal agencies for retribution against his political enemies. Martin was put in charge of the weaponization group in May after his nomination for the top U.S. attorney post in Washington, D.C., was pulled because he spent years defending and even raising money for Jan. 6 defendants. It's unclear what specific role Wise, who worked as an FBI agent and supervisor between 2004 and 2017, will have while working for Martin. One unnamed source told the Times that if the Weaponization Working Group could 'genetically design an adviser' for Martin, that person would look like Wise. One of the tasks Bondi assigned to the group is examining whether there were any 'unethical prosecutions' related to the Jan. 6 attack. The group will also investigate any alleged 'weaponization' of prosecutions brought by federal and state prosecutors involving Trump. The DOJ indicted Wise over his alleged role in the Jan. 6 attack in June 2023. Wise, of Bend, Oregon, was charged with multiple offenses, including assaulting, resisting, or impeding police officers. Police camera footage showed Wise yelling at officers, 'You're disgusting. You are the Nazi. You are the Gestapo,' during the chaos at the Capitol. When rioters began attacking police officers and knocking them to the ground, Wise allegedly incited further violence by repeatedly shouting, 'Kill 'em,' according to the indictment. Wise has denied the charges against him and claimed in July 2024 court filings that he was the victim of 'selective prosecution, selective enforcement, and vindictive prosecution.' Wise was on trial in Washington when Trump returned to the White House in January 2025. One of the president's first acts of his second term was to pardon or grant commutations to more than 1,500 people convicted or charged in connection with the Capitol riot, including some of the most violent offenders. The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former FBI agent pardoned by Trump for Jan. 6 charges now serving at DOJ: Sources
A former FBI agent accused of egging on rioters to attack police during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol is now serving in the Justice Department as part of the so-called "Weaponization Working Group," sources familiar with the appointment confirmed to ABC News. Jared Wise was on trial when he was pardoned as part of President Donald Trump's sweeping series of pardons and commutations for nearly all of the more than 1,500 individuals charged in connection with the Capitol attack. According to sources, Wise is now serving in the department as an investigator and counselor to Ed Martin, the former interim D.C. U.S. Attorney, whose permanent nomination to the post was rejected by Republican senators concerned over his past vocal advocacy for Jan. 6 rioters and other controversial actions he took in Trump's first four months in office. MORE: Trump admin live updates: House takes up Senate's version of Trump's megabill The New York Times first reported Wise's appointment at the DOJ. Wise was charged in May 2023 and later indicted, with prosecutors pointing to videos showing him yelling "Kill 'em!" repeatedly as rioters attacked police outside of the Capitol building. He also allegedly entered the building for roughly nine minutes and then continued shouting at police. 'You guys are disgusting," Wise allegedly said in body camera footage recorded by law enforcement. "I'm former law enforcement. You're disgusting. You are the Nazi. You are the Gestapo. You can't see it. . . . Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you!' A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment when asked about Wise's appointment. Martin also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Pardoned Jan. 6 Rioter Who Threatened Police Joins Justice Dept.
A former F.B.I. agent who was charged with encouraging the mob that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to kill police officers has been named as an adviser to the Justice Department task force that President Trump established to seek retribution against his political enemies. The former agent, Jared L. Wise, is serving as a counselor to Ed Martin, the director of the so-called Weaponization Working Group, according to people familiar with the group's activities. Mr. Martin, a longtime supporter of Jan. 6 defendants, was put in charge of the weaponization group in May after Mr. Trump withdrew his name for a Senate-confirmed position as the U.S. attorney in Washington. His nomination faltered in part because of the work he had done as an advocate and defense lawyer for people charged in connection with the Capitol attack. Even in a Justice Department that has often been pressed into serving Mr. Trump's political agenda, the appointment of Mr. Wise to the weaponization task force was a remarkable development. His selection meant that a man who had urged violence against police officers was now responsible for the department's official effort to exact revenge against those who had tried to hold the rioters accountable. It remains unclear exactly what role Mr. Wise will play as Mr. Martin's adviser. But one person familiar with the working group's activities said that Mr. Martin was proud to have Mr. Wise on his team, adding that there was no better person to serve on the weaponization task force than someone who had experienced the federal government being weaponized against him. If 'we could genetically design an adviser' to Mr. Martin, the person said, he would look like Mr. Wise. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
