Five years ago, Pamela Hemphill forcibly entered the Capitol as part of an angry mob of protesters who, convinced of President Trump’s lie that the 2020 election was stolen, stormed the building on Jan. 6, 2021, in a violent effort to stop Congress from certifying his defeat.
On Tuesday, Ms. Hemphill, a retired addiction counselor from Idaho, entered the building again, this time to offer an emotional apology.
“Thank you for having me back to the Capitol today,” Ms. Hemphill told the panel of House Democrats who invited her to their event on the fifth anniversary of the riot. “I am deeply grateful for this chance to try to make amends.”
Ms. Hemphill, 72, served 60 days in federal prison after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of entering the Capitol during the riot.
But in the years since, she has experienced a political reversal, turning away from Mr. Trump and now seeing the Jan. 6 attack as an insurrection. When Mr. Trump issued a sweeping grant of clemency to those charged in connection with the riot, Ms. Hemphill said she was rejecting it.
“Accepting that pardon would be lying about what happened on January the 6th,” she said on Tuesday. “I am guilty. And I own that guilt.”
Ms. Hemphill’s remarks came as Democrats worked to commemorate the brutal attack — which Representative Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat of New York and the minority leader, said “will be shameful always and forever” — and Mr. Trump’s role in provoking it. Across town at an event with House Republicans, the president continued his efforts to rewrite the history of the assault, condemning those who investigated him for it and playing down his responsibility.
Describing her participation in the riot, Ms. Hemphill grew emotional, at times pausing to collect herself as she tried to hold back tears.
Sitting feet away from a former Capitol Police officer who had been assaulted during the mayhem, Ms. Hemphill’s voice shook as she described marching into the building with the pro-Trump mob.
Ms. Hemphill credited the Capitol Police for protecting her when she was trampled by others who had stormed in. Then, she turned to the former officer, Winston Pingeon. Her voice shaking as she struggled to meet Mr. Pingeon’s gaze, Ms. Hemphill asked for his forgiveness for being part of a mob that attacked him.
“I can’t believe people are still disrespecting you and trying to lie about January the 6th,” Ms. Hemphill said. “I will do everything I can to stop the lies about our brave officers like you.”
Michael Gold covers Congress for The Times, with a focus on immigration policy and congressional oversight.
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