A ruling last Friday by a panel of appellate judges that Jan. 6 insurrectionists can face obstruction charges will come in handy for special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation of Donald Trump’s links to the Capitol riot.
That is the opinion of former Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Wiessmann during an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
Speaking with the hosts, the legal expert characterized the ruling as a “gift” to Smith that could speed along his investigation.
According to reporting from NBC, “The three-judge panel, on a 2-1 vote, upheld the use of the obstruction of an official proceeding charge against defendants who assaulted law enforcement during the Capitol attack. A lower court judge, Trump appointee U.S. District Court Judge Carl Nichols, had previously tossed the charge, a decision the appeals court reversed.”
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Asked about the repercussions, Weissmann explained, “This is really a gift for Jack Smith because, as good as it is for the Washington, D.C. prosecutors who have hundreds of pending cases, who want to know that this is a charge they can continue charging, Jack Smith is going to be thinking about this obstruction charge with respect to the former president.”
“There’s nothing better for Jack Smith than to know that this is already been approved by the D.C. circuit, meaning he can charge it and, unless the Supreme Court disagrees with the D.C. circuit, he knows that this is a rock solid legally, a legal rock solid charge that he has to prove it factually, but getting the sort of pre-clearance is unusual to have and he has to be happy that the court ruled that this is a charge that will stick for any potential charge he is thinking with respect to the former president,’ he added.
Watch the video below or at this link.
MSNBC 04 10 2023 08 08 29
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