President Donald Trump pardoned 11 individuals, including nine people convicted under the Biden administration for violating the Clean Air Act. These defendants used defeat devices—software that bypasses emissions controls—to circumvent federal pollution regulations. Trump justified the pardons in a Truth Social post, calling them a release of those persecuted for 'fixing their car' and framing the prosecutions as political weaponization against his administration.

The pardoned Clean Air violators included Ryan and Wade Lalone, Matt Geouge, Tim Clancy, Mac Spurlock, Joshua Davis, Barry Pierce, Aaron Rudolf, Adam Kidan, and Jonathan Achtemeier. Jonathan Achtemeier was specifically noted in a 2025 DOJ press release for tampering with diesel truck emissions, causing vehicles to spew pollution 30 to 1,200 times above legal limits. The DOJ had previously ordered all defeat device cases dropped in January 2025.

Two pardons covered non-environmental crimes: Jack Harvard for 1980s bank fraud and Adam Kidan for a $147.5 million casino fraud scheme involving counterfeit documents. Kidan is a known Republican campaign donor. Environmental advocates criticized the pardons as undermining decades of air quality protections and setting a precedent for executive clemency in federal environmental violations.