'I climbed the capitol wall': Metro Detroiter among 1500 pardoned for Jan. 6 actions by Donald Trump

Jeremiah Caplinger is one of 1,500 pardoned by President Donald Trump on his first day in office.

On Donald Trump's first day back in the White House, he made a flurry of executive orders – one of which pardoned over 1,500 people charged with crimes related to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol in 2021.

President Trump granted pardons to about 1,500 people convicted of offenses related to the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot while also commuting the sentences of another 14 people who participated in the Capitol riot.

"These are the hostages," he said while signing the paperwork in the Oval Office. Trump said he hopes many are freed shortly.

Among the 1,500 pardoned is Jeremiah Caplinger.

"I climbed the Capitol wall and I went through open doors," he said.

The backstory:

The Michigan native is now 29 and was sentenced to spend 35 days in prison for his actions that day.

"I came here to peacefully make my voice heard. it escalated and turned to something that was not a peaceful protest," Caplinger said about Jan. 6, 2021.

Caplinger says there were federal officials who instigated the protests into what they became.

"Knowing the fact that there were FBI agents, federal officials, inside the Capitol, inside the crowd, agitating the crowd," he said.

The Department of Justice said in a report in response to Jan. 6, 2021, that there were no undercover FBI employees at the protests.

What did happen inside the Capitol tha today would turn Caplinger's live upside down as he was charged with parading, violent entry, and climbing the Capitol wall.

"I had the FBI, DHS, and Michigan State Police lined up my street with AR 15s and a blast shield," he said. "They would consider that a petty misdemeanor offense."

He spent his time in prison and is now pardoned thanks to Trump.

"I was at home watching live as President Trump signed executive order after executive order," he said.

What's next:

Caplinger says he's moving forward with his life – which may one day include a career in politics.

"When the time is right and the calling comes i’ll be ready to answer," he said.

The Source: FOX 2's Ingrid Kelley met with Jeremiah Caplinger for his information in this story.

Capitol RiotDonald J. Trump