Justices will consider whether Jan. 6 rioters can be convicted of obstructing an official proceeding—which Trump has also been charged with.
Topline
The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Tuesday as a man who was charged for participating in the January 6 riot at the Capitol building challenges one of the counts against him, which could lessen the sentences for others who stormed the Capitol building that day—and potentially ease the criminal charges against former President Donald Trump.Key Facts
Justices will hear Fischer v. United States, the federal government’s prosecution of former police officer Joseph Fischer for his actions on January 6.
Fischer was charged with seven counts after entering the Capitol building on January 6, where the government alleges he pushed into a line of police officers, resulting in at least one officer ending up “on the ground,” and sent text messages afterwards saying he “pushed police back about 25 feet.”
Among the crimes that Fischer and many other Capitol riot defendants were charged with is obstruction of an official proceeding under 18 U.S. Code § 1512, which criminalizes any act that “corruptly … obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding, or attempts to do so” and is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
