By Isabella Torregiani
4:43pm PDT, Jul 8, 2025
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U.S. District Court Judge
Tanya Chutkan has rejected a January 6 defendant's claim that he deserves a refund after being pardoned by President
Donald Trump. The man argued that Trump's pardon erased his conviction and that the government should reimburse the court-ordered restitution he already paid.
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After President Donald Trump returned to the White House, he issued pardons to 1,500 individuals tied to the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Among them was Stacy Wade Hager, a Texas resident who had been charged and convicted of four misdemeanors: entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. He was sentenced to seven months in prison and ordered to pay $570 in fees and restitution.
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While awaiting the outcome of his appeal, Stacy Wade Hager was among the 1,500 pardoned by President Donald Trump. He later requested a full refund, claiming his pardon nullified the sentence, and therefore, any financial penalties tied to it.
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According to Judge Tanya Chutkan, the argument lacked legal standing. At least three other judges in the district had previously denied similar motions. In her decision, she wrote that Stacy Wade Hager isn't entitled to recover payments already deposited into the U.S. Treasury — unless Congress authorizes it. Chutkan also cited the U.S. Supreme Court, which previously ruled that a pardon does not entitle a person to reimbursement once fines or fees "have been paid to a party to whom the law has assigned them," as those rights "have become vested" and are "as complete as if they were acquired in any other legal way."
