A significant aftershock in the Supreme Court’s Chevron Earthquake Day is the ruling that a disputed obstruction statute does not cover the violent rioting at the Capitol for which the Justice Department prosecuted hundreds of January 6 defendants.
Putting aside for a moment the consequences for the defendants directly implicated in the uprising, the high court’s decision in Fischer v. United States could have major implications for the Washington, D.C., prosecution of Donald Trump by Biden Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith. Two of the four counts against the former president — the two that account for most of the sentencing exposure in the case — are brought under the statute at issue, Section 1512(c)(2) of the federal penal code.
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