By Steve Neavling
Five Proud Boys leaders convicted for their roles in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol have filed a $100 million lawsuit against the Justice Department, alleging political persecution and constitutional violations.
Filed in federal court in Florida, the lawsuit claims the government engaged in a “systemic abuse” of the legal system to target allies of former President Donald Trump, The Hill reports. Four of the men — Enrique Tarrio, Ethan Nordean, Zachary Rehl, and Joe Biggs — were convicted of seditious conspiracy in 2023. The fifth, Dominic Pezzola, was found guilty of other serious felonies. Tarrio received the longest sentence at 22 years, though all five were released after Trump returned to office and granted them clemency.
The suit presents three constitutional claims under what’s known as a Bivens action, which allows citizens to sue federal officials for rights violations. But legal experts say those claims are almost certain to fail.
“At least in the past decade — two decades, maybe even three decades — the Supreme Court has said that Bivens is all but dead,” said Columbia Law School professor Dennis Fan, a former DOJ attorney. “So, if this were an ordinary case, you would think of this as, you know, ‘Good luck.’”
The Proud Boys also claim malicious prosecution under the Federal Tort Claims Act — the one argument some experts believe could lead to a settlement.
“If there’s going to be a settlement, it’s probably going to be on that claim,” said Rupa Bhattacharyya, former head of the DOJ’s torts branch.
Critics say the lawsuit is more political than legal, aimed at pressuring the Trump administration into a payout.
“I think what they’re hoping for is that somebody has a political thumb on the scales and says, ‘Let’s do these guys a favor because it’s politically expedient,’” said Jon Lewis, a research fellow at George Washington University.
The case follows a separate Trump administration settlement with the family of Ashli Babbitt, the rioter shot and killed by police during the Capitol attack. The government agreed to pay nearly $5 million to resolve that suit.
