Major police unions that backed Trump 'deeply discouraged' by Jan. 6 pardons

22 January

When the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (NACP) endorsed Donald Trump in the United States' 2024 presidential race, some of the police officers who were violently attacked on January 6, 2021 were appalled.

Trump campaigned on pardoning the January 6 rioters, much to the chagrin of Michael Fanone — one of the police officers who suffered violence that day and testified for the January 6 Select Committee in 2022. As Fanone saw it, Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris was the real law-and-order candidate.

After President Trump returned to the White House on January 20, 2025, he issued blanket, across-the-board pardons for around 1,500 January 6 rioters — including those who violently attacked police officers. Fanone has been vehemently critical of the pardons, but not all of the criticism is coming from people who opposed Trump in the 2024 election.

In a joint statement, the FOP and the NACP criticized Trump as well as former President Joe Biden for their "pardons." However, they didn't specifically mention Trump's January 6 pardons or unrelated pardons from Biden.

Before leaving the White House, Biden commuted the life sentence of Native American activist Leonard Peltier — who was convicted of killing two FBI agents in the 1970s. Peltier's supporters maintain that he was wrongly convicted.

"The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) have had longstanding and positive relationships with both President Trump and President Biden and have greatly appreciated their support of the policing profession," the organizations said in their statement. "However, the IACP and FOP are deeply discouraged by the recent pardons and commutations granted by both the Biden and Trump Administrations to individuals convicted of killing or assaulting law enforcement officers. The IACP and FOP firmly believe that those convicted of such crimes should serve their full sentences."

The organizations continued, "Crimes against law enforcement are not just attacks on individuals or public safety — they are attacks on society and undermine the rule of law. 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.

Fanone, meanwhile, specifically addressed Trump's January 6 pardons and said, "I have been betrayed by my country."

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