Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz has told Newsmax that Steve Bannon has a good chance of getting his criminal contempt of Congress conviction overturned on appeal.
According to Dershowitz Bannon received an unfair trial due to the anti-Trump bias in Washington D.C. where his court proceedings took place.
“There was never a chance he could be acquitted for two reasons,” Dershowitz said.
“First, in the District of Columbia, 80%-90% of the people hate Trump or anybody who worked with him.
“No. 2, the judge took away all of his defenses.”
“His defense was Bannon believed that he had an obligation not to speak to the committee because of executive privilege.
“He may have been right, he may have been wrong, but the Congress should have gone to the court’s first, and get an order from a court, and then he would have been properly prosecuted.
“But to go immediately to prosecution is ‘Alice in Wonderland’ justice,” he said.
After being found guilty on Friday, Bannon has remained defiant.
“I stand with Trump and the Constitution,” Bannon said after the guilty verdict.
“I will never back off that.”
Bannon’s lawyer David Schoen said:
“You will see this case reversed on appeal.
“You will see all of these resources, three federal prosecutors, four FBI agents for a misdemeanor are being wasted.
“You cannot find another crime in which, misdemeanor or felony, in which a person is convicted without believing or knowing or having reason to believe he or she did anything wrong.”
Professor Alan Dershowitz told Newsmax Saturday that Stephen Bannon, adviser to former President Donald Trump has a good chance to get his criminal contempt of Congress conviction overturned because the “judge took his defenses away.” https://t.co/i4S0IDNrId
— Newsmax (@newsmax) July 23, 2022
From Yahoo:
Leaving the federal courthouse in Washington, D.C., where his trial had been held, Bannon denounced the Jan. 6 committee — which has held a series of high-profile hearings in recent weeks — as “gutless.”
The committee, for its part, praised Bannon’s conviction as “a victory for the rule of law.” It had asked him to testify about his knowledge of the events on Jan. 6, and to produce documents that could shed light on how the violent riot was organized and planned. Bannon was present at meetings at the Willard Hotel on both Jan. 5 and 6 that investigators say were used to plan the “Stop the Steal” rally, which turned violent.
He refused to do so, setting up a showdown with the federal government that culminated in Friday’s verdict. But there was little contrition or reflection from Bannon or his supporters, even as sentencing looms in late October.
From NBC:
The Justice Department told jurors during the trial that Bannon didn’t turn over documents and testify before the Jan. 6 committee when he was required to do so in October 2021 because he thought he was “above the law.” The prosecution called two witnesses — a Jan. 6 committee staff member and a FBI special agent — and rested its case on Wednesday.
Bannon and his lawyers made clear Friday they planned to appeal, with attorney David Schoen describing the verdict as “round one” in a longer battle.
