One of President Donald Trump’s first orders of business following his inauguration this week was to pardon those jailed in relation to convictions stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol.

One of those people convicted for their role in the attack was Brett Alan Rotella, also known as Brett Ostrander, 35, of Kannapolis.

Last month, Rotella was sentenced to 38 months in prison after he was convicted of assault law enforcement, among other offenses on Jan. 6, 2021, when rioters breached the Capitol building in Washington. According to the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, a federal jury found Rotella guilty of three felony offenses, including obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder, two counts of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers, and several misdemeanors.

As outlined in that office’s statement, according to court documents and evidence presented during the trial, on Jan. 6, 2021, at approximately 2:24 p.m., Rotella was among a crowd of rioters amassed on the West Plaza of the U.S. Capitol building. He was reportedly observed “wearing distinctive clothing that included a red skull cap, a black sleeveless puffy vest over a red sleeveless shirt, and white or gray long shorts.”

Additionally, evidence showed that Rotella “carried a long pole with at least two flags affixed to it at various points during the day.”

Police body-worn camera footage showed that just minutes after his arrival at the West Front, Rotella approached a police barricade and forcibly pushed it toward a Metropolitan Police Department officer, while shouting inflammatory remarks.

“At approximately 2:33 p.m., as the police line on the West Plaza became overwhelmed and was forced to retreat, Rotella was observed taking charge of a group of rioters, directing their movements by periodically signaling with his hand to “hold” and leading them up the southwest stairs toward the Capitol,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office statement said. “Video footage from the Lower West Terrace showed that at approximately 2:40 p.m., Rotella followed retreating officers into the Lower West Terrace Tunnel, the site of some of the most violent attacks against law enforcement that day. Inside the tunnel, as officers attempted to hold back the rioters, Rotella continued his advance, even after pepper balls containing chemical irritant were fired at him.”

Evidence presented during the trial showed that the mob, including Rotella, breached the Capitol entrance at the tunnel by “smashing the glass pane of one of the locked doors,” forcing them open.

CCTV and body-worn camera footage reportedly depicted Rotella entering the tunnel and joining others in a concerted effort to physically assault police officers inside. Inside the tunnel, Rotella pushed against police shields and attempted to leverage his body to push through the police line and into the building.

Rotella reportedly left the tunnel at approximately 2:55 p.m., but remained in the vicinity for approximately 90 more minutes, joining a large crowd that repeatedly surged against the police line. Further video evidence depicted Rotella counting down and leading a coordinated push by the mob against the officers.

Later in the day, Rotella was reportedly observed grabbing a large orange ladder and handing it toward the front of the crowd in an apparent attempt to use it against the officers. Video footage showed Rotella pushing the ladder into the tunnel and pushing against other rioters near him in an effort to collectively breach the police line.

FBI agents arrested Rotella on Aug. 29, 2023, in Mooresville.

The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina.

In the four years following Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,572 individuals were charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 590 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, which is a felony.

The pardons and commutations for Jan. 6 offenders were officially ordered by Trump on Jan. 20.

“This proclamation ends a grave national injustice that has been perpetrated upon the American people over the last four years and begins a process of national reconciliation,” the presidential order read.

The move grants a full, complete and unconditional pardon to all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. It called for the immediate release of those currently jailed and the dismissal of charges for those who had not been convicted yet.

In addition to the pardons, Trump commuted the sentences of the following individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to time served as of Jan. 20, 2025:
• Stewart Rhodes
• Kelly Meggs
• Kenneth Harrelson
• Thomas Caldwell
• Jessica Watkins
• Roberto Minuta
• Edward Vallejo
• David Moerschel
• Joseph Hackett
• Ethan Nordean
• Joseph Biggs
• Zachary Rehl
• Dominic Pezzola
• Jeremy Bertino

Rhodes is the founder of the Oath Keepers, a far-right militia group, described by the Anti-Defamation League as “heavily armed extremists with a conspiratorial and anti-government mindset looking for potential showdowns with the government.”

The list of commutations also includes other Oath Keepers members. Four of them, Nordean, Biggs, Rehl and Bertino all held ranking positions in the Proud Boys, described by the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point as far-right, violent group.

According to the Department of Justice, Pezzola, a Proud Boys member, was the first to breach the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.