Justice Dept.: Sedition charge may apply to protest violence
4 years, 3 months ago

Justice Dept.: Sedition charge may apply to protest violence

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — In a memo to U.S. attorneys Thursday obtained by The Associated Press, the Justice Department emphasized that federal prosecutors should aggressively go after demonstrators who cause violence — and even sedition charges could potentially apply. In January, for example, the department brought federal hate crime charges against a woman accused of slapping three Orthodox Jewish women in one of several apparently anti-Semitic attacks reported throughout New York during Hanukkah. Even some Democrats, including District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser, have called for the Justice Department to pursue federal charges against violent demonstrators, going as far as accusing the administration of declining to prosecute rioters. “This is city property that has been destroyed and you have a local prosecutors office that is ready and willing and able to charge these cases in state court, but the federal government is attempting to emphasize these protest-related crimes for whatever agenda they are seeking to pursue,” said assistant federal public defender Dennis Carroll.

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History of this topic

Justice Department opens probe of police in small Mississippi city over alleged civil rights abuses
1 year, 2 months ago

Justice Department opens probe of police in small Mississippi city over alleged civil rights abuses

Associated Press  

— The U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation Wednesday into alleged civil rights violations by police in a majority Black Mississippi city, stepping in following accusations that officers used excessive force and arrested people without justification. The civil rights organization had previously obtained an audio recording of then-Lexington Police Chief Sam Dobbins using racial slurs and talking about how many …

US Capitol riot: Lawmakers recommend filing charges against Trump
2 years ago

US Capitol riot: Lawmakers recommend filing charges against Trump

Al Jazeera  

US lawmakers investigating the riot at the United States Capitol last year have recommended filing criminal charges against Donald Trump, accusing the former president of “inciting” insurrection. “The committee believes that more than sufficient evidence exists for a criminal referral of former President Trump for assisting, or aiding and comforting, those at the Capitol who engaged in a violent attack …

Former FBI agent says more sedition charges are likely coming for Jan. 6 attackers
2 years, 11 months ago

Former FBI agent says more sedition charges are likely coming for Jan. 6 attackers

Raw Story  

Former FBI special agent Clint Watts told MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace Monday that he thinks more people will be charged with sedition as the cases move forward. "Between the one year of what we've learned and what people have watched, what they've seen repeatedly, anyone that doesn't believe Jan. 6 was an absolute disaster and that the White House was …

‘Whatever it takes’: Garland promises accountability for Capitol riot
3 years ago

‘Whatever it takes’: Garland promises accountability for Capitol riot

Al Jazeera  

US attorney general says investigations into January 6 attack will go on ‘as long as it takes’ to achieve justice. US Attorney General Merrick Garland has promised to ensure justice and accountability for the January 6 Capitol riot, as investigations continue ahead of the one-year anniversary of the deadly attack. In a news conference on Wednesday, Garland said the US …

Movement for Black Lives: Feds targeted BLM protesters
3 years, 4 months ago

Movement for Black Lives: Feds targeted BLM protesters

Associated Press  

The federal government deliberately targeted Black Lives Matter protesters via heavy-handed criminal prosecutions in an attempt to disrupt and discourage the global movement that swept the nation last summer in the wake of the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, according to a new report released Wednesday by The Movement for Black Lives. It also drew a comparison to how …

Capitol riot: DOJ refers former prosecutor for internal investigation after ‘60 Minutes’ interview
3 years, 9 months ago

Capitol riot: DOJ refers former prosecutor for internal investigation after ‘60 Minutes’ interview

CNN  

CNN — The Justice Department has referred former acting Washington US Attorney Michael Sherwin’s unapproved interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” on Sunday about the Capitol riot cases to its Office of Professional Responsibility, a department lawyer said in court on Tuesday. It also sets an early tone in the Capitol riot cases and future media coverage, as a federal judge …

Trump sedition: Former Capitol riot prosecutor’s comments alarm new no-drama Justice Department
3 years, 9 months ago

Trump sedition: Former Capitol riot prosecutor’s comments alarm new no-drama Justice Department

CNN  

CNN — Attorney General Merrick Garland is quietly ushering in a change in tone at the Justice Department, making few public comments and staying out of sight – and unlike his predecessor – eschewing commentary about ongoing investigations. That’s one reason why an interview by Michael Sherwin, the former acting US attorney for the District of Columbia, discussing his push …

‘Facts support’ sedition charges for US Capitol rioters: Official
3 years, 9 months ago

‘Facts support’ sedition charges for US Capitol rioters: Official

Al Jazeera  

The federal investigator said evidence will likely allow the government to file sedition charges in the January 6 breach. Federal investigators have found evidence that would likely allow the United States government to file sedition charges against some of those involved in the deadly January 6 breach on the US Capitol, a Justice Department official has said. “I believe the …

Rare sedition charge gains interest after Capitol attack
3 years, 11 months ago

Rare sedition charge gains interest after Capitol attack

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — A Civil War-era sedition law being dusted off for potential use in the mob attack on the U.S. Capitol was last successfully deployed a quarter-century ago in the prosecution of Islamic militants who plotted to bomb New York City landmarks. In 2012, U.S. District Judge Victoria A. Roberts in Detroit dismissed seditious conspiracy charges brought against a …

Federal 'Strike Force' Builds Sedition Cases Against Capitol Rioters. Will It Work?
3 years, 11 months ago

Federal 'Strike Force' Builds Sedition Cases Against Capitol Rioters. Will It Work?

NPR  

Federal 'Strike Force' Builds Sedition Cases Against Capitol Rioters. Enlarge this image toggle caption Jon Cherry/Getty Images Jon Cherry/Getty Images Members of the insurrectionist mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol last week face what the federal prosecutor in charge calls a "mind-blowing" range of potential charges, from destruction of federal property, trespass and mail theft to possession of destructive devices …

U.S. prosecutors weighing sedition charges in Capitol riot
3 years, 11 months ago

U.S. prosecutors weighing sedition charges in Capitol riot

The Hindu  

Federal prosecutors are considering sedition charges against at least some of the Trump loyalists who stormed the U.S. Capitol last week and will be examining the movement and money flow of the rioters who converged on Washington, officials said in Washington. The early misdemeanor charges against at least some of the rioters are effectively placeholder counts, but more serious counts …

Officials eye sedition, conspiracy charges as investigation of Capitol riot expands
3 years, 11 months ago

Officials eye sedition, conspiracy charges as investigation of Capitol riot expands

LA Times  

The Trump mob at the U.S. Capitol last week included Aaron Mostofsky, right. FBI investigators so far have opened more than 170 individual case files and charged more than 70 people, and “the numbers are going to geometrically increase,” said Michael Sherwin, the acting U.S. attorney in Washington. “We have literally thousands of potential witnesses,” Sherwin said, and as more …

EXPLAINER: Who has been charged in the deadly Capitol riot?
4 years ago

EXPLAINER: Who has been charged in the deadly Capitol riot?

Associated Press  

Dozens of people have already been arrested and prosecutors across the U.S. have vowed to bring to justice those who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, sending lawmakers into hiding as they began their work to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. Those being tried in federal court, where prosecutors can generally secure longer sentences, are charged with things like violent …

Prosecutor: Sedition charge possible for pro-Trump rioters
4 years ago

Prosecutor: Sedition charge possible for pro-Trump rioters

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The top federal prosecutor for the District of Columbia said Thursday that “all options are on the table” for charging members of the violent pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol — including sedition charges. “It’s always helpful to prosecutors if people pose for pictures in the midst of committing crimes,” said Stanford Law School professor David Sklansky, …

AP finds most arrested in protests aren’t leftist radicals
4 years, 2 months ago

AP finds most arrested in protests aren’t leftist radicals

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump portrays the hundreds of people arrested nationwide in protests against racial injustice as violent urban left-wing radicals. “It is highly unusual, and without precedent in recent American history,” said Ron Kuby, a longtime attorney who isn’t involved in the cases but has represented scores of clients over the years in protest-related incidents. Several of the …

Protests erupt after grand jury does not charge Louisville officers in killing of Breonna Taylor
4 years, 3 months ago

Protests erupt after grand jury does not charge Louisville officers in killing of Breonna Taylor

LA Times  

The shooting of Breonna Taylor by Louisville police in March could easily have slipped into obscurity — one more deadly encounter between law enforcement and a Black American. 1 / 30 People comfort a demonstrator after she was hit by a vehicle Thursday night on Sunset Boulevard during protests of the Breonna Taylor grand jury decision. 15 / 30 Hundreds …

Criticized over mass arrests of protesters, L.A. says it won’t seek criminal charges or fines
4 years, 7 months ago

Criticized over mass arrests of protesters, L.A. says it won’t seek criminal charges or fines

LA Times  

Police in Los Angeles arrest a demonstrator for curfew violation last week after a day of peaceful protest against police brutality and the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. “Given what we have seen this week with respect to how LAPD enforced the curfew — the many videos and news reports of excessive force and ambush tactics — any move …

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