After being pardoned by President Donald J. Trump on January 6th, Eliasnick Costians Jr. is once again facing legal complications as U.S. Senior District Judge James K. Bredar has ordered him to remain in custody.
Initially, Costians was denied his release when Judge Bredar, appointed by President Barack Obama in 2010, determined that the pardon did not cover some charges related to the January 6th FBI search of Costians’ Maryland home. A pardon had been granted on January 20th.
Judge Bredar concluded that the pardon did not encompass the federal complaint lodged against Costians in 2022. On June 6, 2025, in his Memorandum and Order, Judge Bredar granted a motion from the U.S. Department of Justice to dismiss Maryland’s indictment against Costians, though he postponed that decision for 45 days.
In his ruling, Judge Bredar explained that federal rules allow the government to dismiss indictments with court approval. He noted that the motion didn’t appear to be malicious or harmful to the public interest.
An emergency motion has been filed
Costians’ attorney, Carolyn Stewart, has filed an emergency motion requesting a reconsideration of the decision, urging for her client’s immediate release. Judge Bredar scheduled a hearing for June 10th regarding this motion.
On June 10th, Stewart and her client were able to secure Costians’ release from the Edward A. Garmatz federal building.
Stewart remarked positively about the court proceedings, saying, “The hearings were fair and conducted professionally.” She added that the U.S. officials in Baltimore were also quite helpful, although it took a couple of hours for the release paperwork to be processed.
Costians had been detained at the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center in Youngstown.
At 46 years old and hailing from Nottingham, Maryland, Costians faced several charges on January 6th in Washington, D.C., including unlawful entry, violent entry, and other offenses at the Capitol. On March 3, 2021, the judge assigned additional charges related to maintaining rallies in the Capitol building.
Thanks to Trump’s pardon declared on January 20th, those charges were dismissed by District Judge Richard Leon a day later.
During an FBI search of Costians’ home in February 2021, agents discovered four vials of controlled substances and four firearms, two of which were not registered to him.
On April 21, 2022, Costians was charged with nine counts, including conspiracy to distribute drugs and possession of firearms by someone using controlled substances.
Notably, the substances involved were identified in court records as testosterone and cocaine.
In June 2023, Costians pleaded guilty to firearm-related charges and was subsequently sentenced by Judge Bredar to 366 days in prison. His reporting date was set for February 12, 2025, despite requests for a delay, which the judge denied. Costians filed an emergency appeal that same day in the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.
The new Trump Department of Justice has stated that they believe the presidential pardon applies to both Costians’ January 6th charges in Washington, D.C., and his subsequent drug charges in Maryland.
U.S. lawyer David Bornstein noted that after consulting with the Department of Justice, they concluded that the president had indeed pardoned Costians for the crimes charged against him.
Judge Bredar’s ruling has also permitted Costians to travel, enabling him to visit his critically ill sister receiving hospice care in Williamsburg, Virginia.
