The Court’s decision could potentially undermine over 300 January 6 prosecutions, including Trump’s.
According to the Justice Department, Joseph Fischer texted his boss before the January 6 insurrection to tell him that he might need to post bail. The accused insurrectionist also allegedly warned that the protest at the US Capitol “might get violent,” and he allegedly wrote that “they should storm the capital and drag all the democrates [sic] into the street and have a mob trial.”
When the day of the insurrection came, Fischer allegedly yelled “Charge!” before running and crashing into a line of police inside the Capitol. The Justice Department says that video footage “shows at least one police officer on the ground after [Fischer’s] assault.” Fischer was only in the Capitol for four minutes, according to the DOJ, before he was “forcibly removed.”
Fischer was arrested after the FBI identified him based on a video he posted on Facebook that showed him inside the Capitol on January 6.
More than three years later, however, Fischer has yet to be tried. The criminal proceeding against him has been tied up in appeals after a Trump-appointed trial judge ruled that one of the criminal laws Fischer is charged with violating must be read very narrowly. That ruling is now being reviewed by the Supreme Court, in a case called Fischer v. United States.
The Supreme Court will hear this case next month.
I think I’m missing something. So the insurrectionists, yell “charge” as if in battle and say to pull all the Democrats out into the street and have a mob trial, but what they’re being charged with is interfering with a government proceeding? Like that’s the only thing wrong here?
You’re missing something. He’s being charged with breaking multiple laws, not just “interfering with a government proceeding.”
But only one of those charges is being contested. The Supreme Court gets to decide if he’ll be tried on that charge, but it sounds like he’ll be tied on the other charges regardless of what the Supreme Court decides. The headline is sensational, but what else would you expect from Vox?
Copy that. Thanks. I did read the whole thing but must have missed that line. Or maybe dozed.
I don’t blame you, the article really overplayed that one charge. I bet they had great “engagement,” though.