Appeals court upholds Steve Bannon's contempt conviction for defying Jan. 6 committee
USA TodayMay 21
Steve Bannon Loses Appeal on Contempt of Congress Conviction
story
Image copyright: Anna Moneymaker/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit on Friday denied Steve Bannon's appeal to overturn his criminal conviction, issued for ignoring a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection.
The judges unanimously ruled that the argument made by the lawyers for Bannon — that the former adviser to Donald Trump was following "advice of counsel" when he failed to answer the subpoena — was "no defense at all."
The Spin
Anti-Trump narrative
The justice system often fails to hold rich, politically connected defendants accountable, so the fact that Bannon remains free isn't surprising. However, he is now a step closer to prison, as the appeals court has upheld his conviction. His last hope may be to postpone his arrest so that Trump can pardon him again in the event of a re-election.
Pro-Trump narrative
It's disturbing that a federal three-judge panel has found that a private citizen can be criminally liable for following legal advice to respond to a subpoena, particularly because the concept of "willfully" in the criminal law context requires the defendant to believe his actions were wrong. This development can only pave the way for political abuses of congressional hearings.
