President-elect Donald Trump, on multiple occasions, has promised to offer pardons to those who participated in the Jan. 6 Capitol protests, sympathizing with what he has said are "political prisoners."

Many of the J6 defendants who are awaiting sentencing or even their first trial, are banking on Trump coming through on his promise, even going as far as making their lawyers delay their cases into next year after Trump is sworn in.

However, knowing that Trump could ultimately pardon some or all of those who've been convicted or who face charges, according to NBC News, the Department of Justice is focusing on prosecuting the most egregious J6 cases before Trump assumes the Oval Office. 

Trump has stated previously on the record that he will "absolutely" consider offering pardons for J6 defendants.

What's going on?

While roughly 71 days remain until Trump is sworn in, the Justice Department has signaled that it will focus on arresting J6 participants who allegedly committed the worst crimes, such as assaults on police officers.

NBC News confirmed the report via a law enforcement officer familiar with the DOJ's intentions.

The outlet noted:

Trump is expected to shut down the yearslong investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack and has said he would “absolutely” pardon some, if not all, of his supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol that day, labeling them “warriors,” “unbelievable patriots,” political prisoners and “hostages.”

While the Trump campaign hasn't officially commented on what actions the president-elect will take regarding the J6 defendants, it has previously stated that it will review them on a "case-by-case basis."

Given Trump's resounding victory last week, the Justice Department’s Capitol Siege Section was recently provided guidance on how to proceed with J6 prosecutions, NBC News learned.

They've also received instruction to reject attempts by defendants' lawyers to delay the cases into next year, presumably given the high probability that Trump will pardon at least some of them.

New priorities

The DOJ, still under President Joe Biden, will reportedly skip arresting those who would only be charged with misdemeanors and instead go for potential felonies, including the most "egregious" cases.

The outlet noted:

There are unlikely to be any further arrests of misdemeanor Jan. 6 defendants — such as those who entered the Capitol but did not assault law enforcement — unless a judge already signed off on those cases, but felony assault cases will proceed, the official said.

There are still at least 75 J6 participants that have been identified by the FBI and online sleuths for potential felony-level cases, most of them regarding alleged assaults on police officers.

Only time will tell if the Justice Department is wasting its time, as Trump will likely come through on his promises as he typically does.