To date, 325 defendants have been found guilty of crimes resulting from violations of the Capitol, with the majority It was a misdemeanor. But the most important test of the Justice Ministry's work has not yet come. An ongoing hearing of the panel on January 6 produced compelling testimony pointing out Trump's knowledge of the potential for violence. To that place.
Take a look at the latest developments in prosecutions, petitions and judgments on January 6th.
DOJ's complete jury trial record
The eight defendants on January 6 were due to their involvement in an attack on the Capitol rather than a plea bargain provided by the Department of Justice. I faced a jury on suspicion of a felony. Department. Whether it's Thomas Webster, a former New York Police Department officer charged with assaulting police officers, or Dustin Thompson, charged with attempting to interfere with Congress's work to prove the election. All of them have been convicted of all charges so far. In the process, he plundered the Senator's office.
The result is D.C. The jury trial pool was too prejudiced against those facing the relevant accusations on January 6th, leading to protests from Trump supporters that they could not reach a fair verdict. However, some judges pointed out the overwhelming evidence provided by the Justice Department in these cases and wiped out these arguments. It boasts video recordings of defendants' actions, eyewitness testimony from officers who fought them, and many shared mobs. On social media.
The only acquittal was in the favor of one judge, Judge Trevor McFadden, of the US District Court. The two defendants have waived their right to a jury trial and have chosen to work with McFadden, who was particularly skeptical of the Justice Department's treatment of the misdemeanor defendant on January 6. Trump's appointed man acquitted defendant Matthew Martin on all four counts against him, claiming that Martin might have reasonably believed that Parliamentary police had given him access to the building. He also acquitted New Mexico County Commissioner Defendant Kuey Griffin for one of two charges he faced for hours remaining after breaking into restricted parliamentary grounds. did.
The prosecutor's conviction rate in court may help the department ensure guilty plea from other similarly accused defendants who want to avoid the same consequences. there is.
The most important upcoming proceedings resulting from the January 6th attack will be centered around two radical groups, Oath Keepers and Proud Boys. Both groups have seen their leaders charged with sedition conspiracy, and many other connected defendants are also faced with felony charges. Stewart Rhodes, the founder of Oath Keepers, and his top ally will face the jury in September with former Proud Boys National Chairman Enrique Tario and four conspirators. The person to be killed is on track for the December trial.
Radical Group Trial
But the work of the selection committee on January 6 — a bright spotlight on this role Percentage of domestic radicals of the Trump faction in attacks on the Capitol — already affecting the timing of these trials and could continue to shake the calendar.
The Commission plans to hold a hearing next week with a full focus on the relationship between Trump World and the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. Some of the people facing the alleged conspiracy have been identified by name and may have been publicly portrayed as part of their efforts to prevent a forceful transition of power. Concerns about pretrial publicity shared by the Justice Department have led Judge Timothy Kelly of the US District Court to move the Proud Boys trial from August to December.
Judge Amit Mehta of the US District Court has not postponed Rhodes' trial until September, but the committee's plans of choice may change the judge's calculations. .. The panel suggests that it is likely to publish a final report and records of about 1,000 witness interviews by September, many of which may be related to ongoing cases.
Various Judgments
Approximately 200 defendants have been watching the case from arrest to judgment, with the majority pleading guilty to misdemeanor crimes. As a result, the judgment is biased towards probation and house arrest rather than important imprisonment conditions. It can change as some of the people facing more serious accusations are tried or pleaded guilty to themselves.
Defendants have been sentenced to months and even years of imprisonment for felony plea bargaining and increasing jury convictions. However, the judgments were significantly different, partly because of the 22 different US District Court judges who dealt with the January 6 case. The toughest sentence to date went to Robert Palmer, who was sentenced to 63 months in prison after pleading guilty to multiple assaults on police officers guarding the lower West Terrace tunnel of the Capitol. rice field.
Trump's Question
On January 6, the defendant raised more frequently in the last few weeks questions about Trump's own involvement in exacerbating the violence of the day. Vivid testimony by former White House adviser Cassidy Hutchinson — with supporters of the Capitol despite recognition of Trump's weapons in the crowd on January 6 and repeated appeals of his adviser. His desire to march into — has increased his focus on the role of Trump by stalking the crowd.
Judges almost always ignored defendants' allegations that Trump's actions influenced their own decisions to violate police boundaries and commit other crimes. .. The jury rejected a similar argument raised by Thompson during the April trial.
However, the hearings of the selected committees are still rippling through the ongoing criminal cases. One defendant, Anthony Williams, sought to postpone his trial by citing the hearing as a disadvantage to his proceedings. Judge Beryl Howell of the US District Court dismissed his motion, claiming that the hearing would benefit him.
"Why does the theme really useless to this defendant and look like a small cog of bigger political tactics happening behind the scenes?" Howell rejected Williams' move. Said.
In one of the most extensive incidents on January 6, some of the defendants faced the most serious police assault charges related to violence in the lower tunnel of the West Terrace of the Capitol. In response, lawyers quoted the next release on January 6th. Commission record as a reason to postpone the trial scheduled to begin on October 3. The judge in that case, McFadden, has not yet participated in the motion.
