The idea is almost too outrageous to believe—but it’s real.

One of the lawyers representing Jan. 6 defendants is now pushing for a government panel to financially compensate rioters for what they claim were “unfair prosecutions.”

This so-called “nonjudicial resolution committee” would decide how much taxpayer money should be paid to individuals who were charged—and in many cases convicted—for storming the U.S. Capitol in 2021.

The panel’s backers say it should be modeled after the one used to support 9/11 victims. But the Capitol rioters are not victims. Many violently disrupted the peaceful transfer of power, attacked law enforcement, and broke laws in plain view. President Trump has already pardoned many of them. Now their lawyers want a paycheck, too.

This is a line we cannot allow the government to cross.

Pardons are one thing—but using federal resources to reward participants in an attack on our democratic system sets a dangerous precedent. It sends the message that political violence is not only forgivable, but profitable.

The proposal isn’t just offensive—it’s a distortion of justice. The Department of Justice exists to uphold the law, not to compensate those who tried to undermine it. And taxpayers should not be asked to foot the bill for people who chose to join a violent mob.

We, the undersigned, call on the Department of Justice to publicly and unequivocally reject any effort to establish a panel or program to compensate Jan. 6 participants.

We also urge Congress to conduct oversight if this proposal advances in any official capacity.

Americans have different views on pardons, politics, and the events of that day—but one thing is clear: No one who attacked our Capitol should be paid for doing it.