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Pro-Trump Police Union Says Jan. 6 Pardons Send 'A Dangerous Message'

A police union that endorsed Donald Trump during the 2024 election campaign has condemned the now-president over his sweeping pardon of Jan. 6, 2021, rioters.

In a joint statement with the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) on Tuesday said it was “deeply discouraged” by recent pardons and commutations given by Trump and former President Joe Biden to those who have been convicted of killing or assaulting police.

On Monday, Trump offered clemency to the roughly 1,500 people charged in relation to the Capitol riot. Some of those given pardons had been handed multi-year sentences forassaulting police officers or other more serious crimes.

Dozens of officers were injured during the attack. Five officers died afterward, one from a stroke and four by suicide.

The statement does not make an explicit reference to the Jan. 6 pardons. But the only ones handed down by Trump in his second term involve the violence at the U.S. Capitol four years ago.

It reads, “Allowing those convicted of these crimes to be released early diminishes accountability and devalues the sacrifices made by courageous law enforcement officers and their families.”

“When perpetrators of crimes, especially serious crimes, are not held fully accountable, it sends a dangerous message that the consequences for attacking law enforcement are not severe, potentially emboldening others to commit similar acts of violence,” the statement continued.

The FOP, which has a membership of more than 377,000 officers, is the largest police union in America. In a September press release headed “FOP Endorses Trump!,” Patrick Yoes, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, said there was “no doubt — zero doubt — as to who (members) want as our president for the next four years: Donald J. Trump.” The union also endorsed Trump in 2016 and 2020.