President Donald Trump opens up about pardoning January 6 defendants and the assassination attempt against him on 'Hannity.'

In the aftermath of the near blanket pardons issued by President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 for all persons prosecuted in connection with the events of January 6, 2021, the loudest criticism always goes something like this: 

"President Trump has released hundreds of dangerous criminals from prison even though they pled guilty or were convicted by juries or judges, including some appointed by Trump himself."

But is it fair to characterize everyone caught up in the criminal justice process in the District of Columbia as "criminals" – dangerous or otherwise – if there was no fair process available to reach a judgment as to their guilt?

WILLIAM SHIPLEY: THE CONSTITUTIONAL REASON WHY TRUMP'S SWEEPING JAN. 6 PARDONS WERE JUSTIFIED

Sure, there were trials. Defendants could put their fate in the hands of jurors picked from perhaps the most anti-Trump jury pool in the nation, or they could choose another option. They could ask for a "bench trial," where the judge – including some appointed by Republican presidents – would hear the evidence and render verdicts. That had to present the opportunity for a fair trial even when a jury trial would never be fair, right? 

In my 21 years as a federal prosecutor, with dozens of criminal trials involving a myriad of federal crimes from drug trafficking to tax fraud, I never had a single case where the defendant opted for bench trial over a jury trial. In the 12 years that have followed as a criminal defense attorney -- all in federal court – I had never recommended a bench trial to a........

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