Ryan Nichols

Public January 6 profile · ready to claim

Eric Lee Peterson

Pardoned January 6 defendant

Eric Lee Peterson 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 →

Eric Lee Peterson had never been in trouble with the law before January 6. Kansas City, Missouri. No criminal record. His attorney put it plainly: the offense was entering and remaining in the Capitol for about eight minutes without authorization. He took a few photos and left. No violence alleged. [FACT - court filing; JC Post] In late 2024, a federal judge - Tanya Chutkan, who had presided over one of the highest-profile cases in the country - granted Peterson permission to travel to Washington and attend the January 20, 2025 inauguration. Days later, President Trump granted clemency to January 6 defendants, and Peterson's pending sentencing was rendered moot. [FACT - CNN; JC Post] A first-time, non-violent defendant from Missouri who was inside for eight minutes. That is the whole record. The record: U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Arrested August 2021. Pleaded guilty to entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds. This profile is unclaimed. If this is you - or your family - claiming it is free, forever.

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Connection to United States v. Nichols

Eric Lee Peterson appears in the record of United States v. Nichols. The full case — timeline, people, documents — is public and free.

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