President Donald Trump has issued a pardon for former Army Lt. Mark Bashaw, who faced a court-martial and a criminal conviction after refusing to comply with Biden-era Covid mandates. Bashaw’s refusal to take the Covid-19 vaccine, wear a mask indoors, or submit to routine testing led to his prosecution under the military’s strict vaccine requirements implemented by then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in 2021. Bashaw, the first service member to stand trial over the rules, was convicted in 2022 but avoided jail time.
