Fighting Shadows $17.76 →
Ryan Nichols
Join

Public January 6 profile · ready to claim

David Alan Blair

January 6 case-file subject

David Alan Blair profile photograph from NPR's January 6 archiveDocumented editorial-use image
NPR's The Capitol Charges; database photo credit: Department of Justice (all named credit exceptions excluded) Published for archive identification and reporting; reuse rights are not represented as cleared.Image source →

David Alan Blair is a Clarksburg, Maryland man who did something almost no January 6 defendant did: he turned around and sued, and part of his lawsuit is still alive in court right now. Most people in this archive were only ever defendants. David Alan Blair became a plaintiff too. WHO HE IS FACT - Blair is a resident of Clarksburg, in Montgomery County, Maryland, roughly 35 miles up I-270 from the Capitol (WUSA9; Law and Crime). FACT - He was arrested February 17, 2021, in the earliest wave of January 6 arrests. NEEDS AUTHENTICATION - Blair trade, employer, and military service if any have not been reported publicly. This archive has no account of his working life. If a family member or friend wants that filled in, we will publish it. THE LEGAL FIGHT - BOTH DIRECTIONS FACT - On March 29, 2022, Blair pleaded guilty to one count of interfering with a law-enforcement officer during a civil disorder. The remaining criminal counts were dismissed. FACT - On July 13, 2022 he was sentenced to five months of imprisonment, 18 months of supervised release, and $2,000 in restitution (PBS NewsHour). Five months - among the shorter felony sentences in the entire January 6 docket. FACT - On January 20, 2025, David Alan Blair was granted a full and unconditional presidential pardon, and the DOJ Office of the Pardon Attorney lists him among January 6 pardon-certificate recipients. FACT - Blair also filed his own federal civil suit, case 1:23-cv-01574-AHA in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, bringing excessive-force claims against officers over how he was treated. FACT - On July 21, 2026 the court resolved the federal constitutional claims in the officers favor on qualified-immunity grounds, but remanded his District of Columbia law claims to D.C. Superior Court. That means part of David Blair case is still being litigated - by him, as the plaintiff. Charges are charges. A guilty plea is a guilty plea. A pardon is a pardon. And a man who files his own suit and keeps a live claim four years later is a man who believes the record is not finished. CASE RECORD Name: David Alan Blair Hometown: Clarksburg, Montgomery County, Maryland Criminal case number: 1:21-cr-00186 Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Arrest: February 17, 2021 Plea: March 29, 2022 - civil disorder Sentence: July 13, 2022 - five months Clemency: Full pardon, January 20, 2025 Civil case: 1:23-cv-01574-AHA, D.C.-law claims remanded to D.C. Superior Court, July 21, 2026 DOJ case page: https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/defendants/blair-david Search terms people use to find this page: David Blair January 6, David Alan Blair pardon, Clarksburg Maryland January 6 defendant, Maryland J6 pardon, January 6 defendant excessive force lawsuit. This profile is unclaimed. If this is you - or your family - claiming it is free, forever.

The case file

On the record

Case number
1:21-cr-00186
Court
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Disposition
Arrested February 17, 2021. Pleaded guilty March 29, 2022 to interfering with a law-enforcement officer during a civil disorder; remaining criminal counts were dismissed. Sentenced July 13, 2022 to five months imprisonment, 18 months supervised release, and $2,000 restitution according to preserved sentencing reporting. Listed by the DOJ Office of the Pardon Attorney as a January 6 pardon-certificate recipient. In separate civil case 1:23-cv-01574-AHA, federal excessive-force claims were resolved for the officers on qualified-immunity grounds on July 21, 2026, while D.C.-law claims were remanded to Superior Court.
Arrested
February 17, 2021
Plea
March 29, 2022
Sentenced
July 13, 2022

Charges

  • Assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers using a dangerous weapon — original charge; dismissed
  • Civil disorder — guilty plea
  • Obstruction of an official proceeding — original charge; dismissed
  • Entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon — original charge; dismissed
  • Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon — original charge; dismissed
  • Engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon — original charge; dismissed
  • Unlawful possession of a dangerous weapon on Capitol grounds or buildings — original charge; dismissed
  • Disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds or in a Capitol building — original charge; dismissed
  • Act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings — original charge; dismissed

Sentence

Five months of imprisonment, followed by 18 months of supervised release, and $2,000 restitution, according to contemporaneous AP/PBS sentencing reporting; signed judgment pending capture.

Press & news

Public knowledge · no paywall

This profile is free for anyone to read.

Sign-in is only required to claim ownership, manage a claimed profile, or suggest a factual correction. Reading and sharing the public record never requires an account.

Claim this profileSuggest a correction

A free account is required for either action so submissions remain tied to a real person and can be reviewed.

2views0shares

Tap how this hits you — no signup, everyone sees the count

Connection to United States v. Nichols

David Alan Blair appears in the record of United States v. Nichols through 5 shared documents on file below. The full case — timeline, people, documents — is public and free.

Walk the whole case →

Evidence on file

5 documents on file

Court1 document

Court orders, rulings, transcripts, and docket entries.

Blair v. District of Columbia — Qualified-Immunity and Remand Opinion (ECF No. 46)

ruling · Jul 21, 2026

Blair v. District of Columbia — Qualified-Immunity and Remand Opinion (ECF No. 46)

Ten-page memorandum opinion by Judge Amir H. Ali. The court granted the officers summary judgment on Blair’s federal claims based on qualified immunity, denied Blair’s cross-motion, and remanded the remaining D.C.-law claims. Viewing evidence in Blair’s favor, the court said a jury could find the challenged baton strikes objectively unreasonable; the ruling did not establish final civil liability.

Read & discuss →Open at the source →

Govt response3 documents

Responses from DC DOC, the U.S. Marshals, and federal agencies.

News1 document

Press coverage.